Mikaela Benton ’21 has been named an inaugural recipient of the Phi Beta Kappa Key into Public Service Scholarship.
The Phi Beta Kappa Society, the oldest and most prestigious of all academic honor societies, has named Mikaela Benton ’21 a recipient of its inaugural Key into Public Service Scholarship.
The scholarship is awarded to promising liberal arts and sciences undergraduate students and designed to connect them with opportunities and future careers in public service. Phi Beta Kappa has recognized Benton for her academic achievement, breadth and depth in the liberal arts and sciences, and demonstrated interest in public service.
According to Phi Beta Kappa, Benton was one of 20 scholars selected from more than 600 applicants at Phi Beta Kappa institutions across the nation to receive the $5,000 undergraduate scholarship. The scholarship will help Benton, a political science and Spanish major from Woodbridge, Virginia, pursue the passion for public service she found during a recent internship on Capitol Hill. The scholarship does not convey membership in Phi Beta Kappa.
“I was able to see how democracy works, answering the phones and noting the concerns of citizens,” Benton said. “That opportunity showed me not only the power of the people but what it is like to work and serve other people. Ever since then I knew I wanted to work in the public sector.”
Benton’s list of accomplishments at Elon includes membership in the Sigma Delta Pi and Pi Sigma Alpha honor societies, as well as being named to the Elon President’s List three times and the Black Excellence Awards Phoenix Club twice.
Benton is excited to receive the Key into Public Service Scholarship because it will allow her to work closely with – and learn from – a mentor in the public service sector. Benton plans to pursue postgraduate work and a career as a foreign service officer and knows the scholarship will supplement her work as a senior at Elon and beyond.
“This scholarship will provide me with different perspectives and opportunities,” she said. “I think this experience will allow me to cultivate my leadership skills and have a clearer picture of how my education can be used to serve the public sector.”
Benton, an Elon Honors Fellow, is currently conducting research titled “The nature and effect of President Trump’s targeted attacks on minority women in the House of Representatives,” under the mentorship of Professor of Political Science and Policy Studies Laura Roselle. Benton’s academic advisor is Associate Professor of Political Science Carrie Eaves.
Phi Beta Kappa celebrates and advocates for excellence in the liberal arts and sciences. On April 13, 2010, the Phi Beta Kappa Society installed a chapter at Elon University, the seventh institution in North Carolina to meet these high standards of excellence.