Senior accounting student Mackenzie Fazenbaker has received a $10,000 scholarship from the fifth largest accounting firm in the United States, RSM.

RSM’s US Foundation’s national scholarship program, Power Your Education, awards only 10 students in the country with this scholarship. The scholarship also comes with an invitation to participate in the company’s competitive Pathways summer leadership program.

Applicants were asked to submit a 30-second video on what the “power of being understood” means to them as well as answer the question: What makes you unique? Submissions were judged based on alignment with the firm’s core values of respect, integrity, teamwork, excellence and stewardship.

In her video application, Fazenbaker notes her annual trips to Nicaragua. “The power of being understood means going out of your comfort zone and building relationships with people you normally would not interact with. It means working together, despite differences, to make the community better. The power of being understood is being able to relate to others from different backgrounds, cultures and countries. It means having dialogue with people who have different opinions, recognizing we are better together.”

She added, “My passion to serve makes me unique. Whether by starting my own non-profit, giving people financial advice, or helping others start their own businesses, I want to use accounting to impact others.”

Fazenbaker is the only recipient from a private, Christian school. She plans to use her scholarship towards the pursuit of a Master of Accountancy (M.Acc.) degree from Samford that she will begin in the summer 2019 semester.

“We are proud of Mackenzie, and I am proud of the work our accounting faculty do day in and day out to help develop such outstanding people,” said Alan Blankley, professor and chair of the Department of Accounting in Brock School of Business.