A rising senior from Chicago working to integrate the arts into public health strategies has received the prestigious Beinecke Scholarship to support future graduate studies.
Lee Nah ’25 — who is majoring in psychology, gender and sexuality studies and studio art — aims to use the award to continue the academic work that melds her various passions.
“I’ve been looking for a way to marry my interdisciplinary academic background,” she said. “Graduate school will allow me to thread my commitment to intersectional feminist theory, policy reform, and creative arts practices.”
The Beinecke Scholarship was created in 1971 to encourage students of “exceptional promise” to pursue graduate studies in the arts, humanities and social sciences. The scholarship provides $5,000 immediately prior to entering graduate school and $30,000 more while attending it.
Nah is part of a cohort of 20 winners this year, making her the eighth Beinecke Scholar in the College’s history and the first since 2009. The program of the Sperry Fund has supported 739 college juniors since 1975.
Already an accomplished student, Nah previously won the Voyager Scholarship, an award created by the Obamas and the cofounder of Airbnb that allows undergraduates to develop a summer travel experience focused on public service. In June, she was invited to a roundtable with young community leaders in Chicago to discuss pluralism with President Barack Obama and Obama Foundation CEO Valerie Jarrett.
This summer, Nah returned home from studying abroad at the University of St. Andrews, Scotland to continue her work in Chicago, where she previously interned with the health department and served on the Mayor’s Youth Commission. Her busy summer includes working as a fellow with the city’s Healing Arts Chicago initiative and traveling to Oakland, California, and New York, cohort cities of One Nation/One Project, a national initiative to investigate arts impact on community health.
“I’m looking forward to exploring how arts and cultural engagement creates connections and promotes holistic well-being in communities of color,” she said.
Associate Professor of Psychology Margaret Stevenson, who directs Kenyon’s Law and Society Program and for whom Nah has worked as a research assistant, said that Nah’s public service experiences in Chicago have set her apart in understanding real-world issues.
“Lee Nah is clearly going places — her success is already being nationally recognized,” Stevenson said. “It is clear that her impressive accomplishments stem from her passion for and commitment to advancing policy and advocacy initiatives in ways that improve the lives and mental health of marginalized communities and youth.”
Nah, whose mother emigrated from South Korea, is a member of the Kenyon Educational Enrichment Program (KEEP) to empower underrepresented students. She has served as an associate with The Gund and will be president of Kenyon’s radio station WKCO this coming year. She also has been a leader in mentoring programs, both for her peers and students in Knox County schools.
Adele Davidson, Charles P. McIlvaine Professor of English and the College liaison for the Beinecke Scholarship, described Lee as a brilliant student and a forceful advocate who is committed to working against discrimination in a variety of ways.
“As a triple major at Kenyon, Lee truly embodies the best of the liberal arts, using a feminist perspective and a creative interest in studio art as tools for promoting, through social psychology, better conditions and outcomes for marginalized communities,” she said.
Nah, who will spend two weeks at the Ox-Bow School of Art & Artists’ Residency in Michigan before returning to Kenyon, thanked her many mentors as well as the Office of National Fellowships & Scholarships and Betsy Billiter, assistant director of academic advising, for their support in applying for the award.
“I’m beyond grateful for my teachers, mentors, and arts communities across Chicago and Kenyon whose work has demonstrated theory in practice for me,” she said.