CITY, COUNTY MANAGERS ASSOCIATION                                                                                                
AWARDS SCHOLARSHIP TO WCU STUDENT

Graduate student Kendra Penland Turner, an intern in the Asheville City Manager's Office, shares a laugh with Jeff Richardson, Asheville's assistant city manager.

Kendra Penland Turner, a graduate student in Western Carolina University's Master of Public Affairs Program, is the recipient of the 2006 Jake Wicker Scholarship awarded by the North Carolina City and County Managers Association.

The $1,800 scholarship is awarded annually to a graduate student in public affairs who is interested in pursuing a career as a town, city or county manager.

In her final semester of graduate study, Turner is holding down two internships in Asheville – one with the Asheville City School system, and one with the Asheville city manager's office, where she works with Jeff Richardson, assistant city manager who sometimes teaches in Western's MPA program.

Turner is the daughter of Teck and Jeanne Penland of Asheville. She grew up in Davie County and graduated from high school in Manama, Bahrain, before returning to the United States. Turner is a 2004 graduate of WCU, where she earned a bachelor's degree in Spanish and minored in communications. She and her husband, Harmon Turner, have a 4-year-old daughter, Clementine.

 “Western's MPA program has a long association with the N.C. City and County Managers Association, and we are appreciative of the support provided to deserving students,” said Christopher Cooper, MPA program director. “We also feel it's been a good investment for the association, as many graduates of the program have gone on to become city or county managers in North Carolina.”

For more information about the MPA Program, call (828) 227-7475.