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Kelsey LeighAnne Greenwood

Biography

Highlights of Young Scholar Experience: Kelsey Greenwood is thankful for all the opportunities to better herself that the Foundation provided. There were the summer programs and so many other material things. But what will remain in her heart forever is the warmth and kindness her advisor showed her while visiting her home in Alabama. Earlier that day a family pet had died. “My adviser put a hand on my shoulder and whisked me away. I’m not sure I ever expressed how much that meant to me.”

Profile: Almost every teenager in America wants to be independent, not held back by mom and dad’s curfews, rules and regulations. Young Scholar and now College Scholar Kelsey has been fiercely independent since she was seven. While living with her father and grandmother in Decatur, a small city in northern Alabama, Kelsey began to push herself in school and became closer to her teachers and adults instead of children her own age. She seemingly missed out on the joys of childhood and fast-forwarded her life to adulthood and constant responsibility. She also realized very early her ability to put words on paper. That ability is what led her to leave public school in her hometown and board some 90 miles away at the prestigious Alabama School of Fine Arts in Birmingham. “Today I have developed my ability to write what I see and reach out to others through these visions.”

Inspiration: A fellow Southern author, Susan Vaught, has inspired Kelsey to be the best writer she can be. Her novel, Fat Tuesday “taught me beautiful and powerful truths about myself as a person.” Kelsey wrote to Ms. Vaught telling her what a great influence her book was “and to my surprise, she wrote back.” The two have maintained contact “and she has been a constant help to me, as a woman who can identify with my experiences as a writer and in other facets of my life, and she uplifts me regularly.”

Aspiration: To continue to develop as a writer and to touch as many people as possible through her writing.

Making a Difference: For the past year Kelsey has worked with the Birmingham Area Gay, Straight and Lesbian Youth, a community organization that promotes dialogue locally about issues of sexuality and gender and also creates a safe space for the gay community of the city. She also tutors local elementary school students in writing.

Accolades: She is most proud of the fact that a screenplay she authored won a statewide contest. Kelsey is also a member of the National Honor Society at her high school, and was presented a merit award for poetry by the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts. In addition her poetry earned her Silver Medals in separate competitions sponsored by Hollins University and Washington University in St. Louis.

Interesting fact: When she was in 8th grade Kelsey and her grandmother took the adventure of a lifetime to New York City and while there saw her first Broadway play, the Tony Award-winning production of Wicked. By accident (or fate) the couple sitting next to Kelsey were natives of Birmingham and were familiar with the Alabama School of Fine Arts. That was the first Kelsey ever heard of her future alma mater and the school that has meant so much to her.
 

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