In May 2022, after a lengthy article in The New Yorker drew widespread media attention to Fierceton's story, the university dropped the charge and awarded her the degree. Rhodes Scholar Who Allegedly Lied About Abuse, Poverty Loses Spot at Oxford Mackenzie Fierceton, 23, a 2016 graduate of the Whitfield School in Creve Coeur, is one of just 32 U.S. college students awarded a four-year scholarship for graduate studies at the University of Oxford in England. How college applicants embellish admission essays - New York Post [2], Wendy Ruderman, a reporter for The Philadelphia Inquirer, called Fierceton to interview her for a story about the scholarship. Fierceton considered dropping out, but "if I truly can't do this, where am I supposed to return to? December 8, 2020. vol 67 issue 21. Rich privileged white girl Mackenzie Fierceton lies about being poor "[3][l], The Chronicle story led to nationwide coverage,[17][18] most of which framed the narrative as Penn and the Rhodes Trust had in their reports, depicting Fierceton as yet another exposed fraud. She found Fierceton's diary at the house and read it, then interviewed teachers and administrators at Whitfield, learning of Morrison's insulting texts to Fierceton. ")[3], The OSC report also concluded that nothing in her academic record warranted the revocation of either degree. Uni student loses scholarship after allegedly lying on her application Penn's report notes that Fierceton disputes this account. An American woman who claimed to be poor and won a Rhodes scholarship to Oxford has lost her place after it emerged that she attended a $30,000-a-year private school. Whitfield graduate recognized as Rhodes Scholar | Schools Mother and daughter both told the same stories they had earlier; Morrison depicted her daughter as "willful and intense", claiming she had bought and read many books to try to help her understand the issues she said Fierceton had. her degree has been withheld and she won't get to go to Oxford, despite her academic achievements and social work . She is poor, but she has not been poor for long enough. Mackenzie Fierceton, 23, is one of just 32 U.S. college students awarded a four-year scholarship for graduate studies at the University of Oxford in England, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. Penn shut down in-person classes and gave students living on campus a week to find somewhere else to live until it was safe to return. In November 2020, when University of Pennsylvania graduate student Mackenzie Fierceton won the prestigious and highly competitive Rhodes Scholarship to study at Oxford one of just 32 scholars selected from a pool of 2,300 applicants she was praised by the Ivy League school's president in a newsletter. Mackenzie Fierceton. Mackenzie Fierceton, 23, a 2016 - St. Louis Post-Dispatch - Facebook Another girl told me that she was low-income because her dad makes $400,000 a year, and that's "New York poor." Each . A Wednesday report from the Daily Mail stated that 24-year-old Mackenzie Fierceton grew up in a $750,000 home in Missouri with her mother a doctor and attended a $30,000/year private high school. Mackenzie Fierceton, 23, originally from St. Louis, Missouri, possesses a bachelor's degree from the University of Pennsylvania and planned to utilize the scholarship to pursue a Ph.D. in. The Currency of Adversity in Elite Spaces - New York Times [2], In the early 2000s the couple went through a protracted divorce during which a guardian ad litem was appointed to represent their daughter's interests at the custody hearing. Fierceton had apparently made much of her status as a 'first generation, low income' student, an abuse . Former St. Louis woman who spent time in foster . Mackenzie spent her youth in the foster care system and wrote her capstone thesis for the University of Pennsylvania's Civic Scholars Program on the foster-to-prison pipeline. His mother went to Oxford. Raised in Chesterfield, Missouri, a West County suburb of St. Louis, she attended and graduated from the Whitfield School in Creve Coeur. And to me, I'm like I am a household of one, so I am the only person in my family. Learn how and when to remove this template message, the state's Department of Social Services, tortious interference with a business relationship, negligent infliction of emotional distress, "Verified Answer and New Matter to Plaintiff's Complaint", "How an Ivy League School Turned Against a Student", "Deconstructed: Mackenzie Fierceton on Her Battle With UPenn", "Ex Alderman Newsletter 168 And Chesterfield 113", "St. Luke's physician charged with felony child abuse", "Abuse charges against former St. Luke's physician are dropped", "Henry Lovelace, owner of Wild Horse Fitness Passes Away", "Former St. Louis woman who spent time in foster care named Rhodes Scholar", "Thousands petition U. to cut ties with Philly PD, reform militarized campus 'police state', "Penn student who aged out of foster care wins prestigious Rhodes Scholarship", "Following public outcry, Penn lifts hold on former Rhodes Scholar Mackenzie Fierceton's master's degree", "University Mourns Loss of Cameron Avant Driver", "Student loses Rhodes scholarship over allegations of lying about her foster care upbringing", "Former St. Louis-area student loses Rhodes scholarship over 'false narratives', "Student Misleads With Story of Poverty and Abuse and Wins Rhodes ScholarshipNow, the Media Is Defending Her", "Did This Rhodes Wannabe Lie About Her Background?
