Carnes Named 2024-25 Presser Scholar
MaKenna Carnes (center) accepts the Presser Scholar Award from University President Sue Thomas and Mark Jennings, professor of music.
MaKenna Carnes, a recent bachelor’s of music in vocal performance graduate from Kirksville, has been named the Presser Scholar for the 2024-25 academic year.
The Presser Undergraduate Scholar Award is given to a student with a high level of academic and musical accomplishment who embodies the qualities of leadership and citizenship and also exemplifies equity and inclusion values. The student must be in their final year of study as a full-time or part-time undergraduate music major.
While at Truman, Carnes was an active member of the McNair Program. She was also a soprano singer in Cantoria, served as choir president and sang multiple solos with the choir. This year she was one of the Gold Medal Concerto Competition winners and performed her winning piece, “Je dis que rien ne m’épouvante,” from the opera “Carmen” by George Bizet, with the University Orchestra in March. Carnes plans to pursue a master’s degree in choral conducting at the University of Alabama this fall.
