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For Mya Lee ’26, creativity has been the root of her passions since she owned a baking business at 11 years old.

“Growing up, I was always making things for people, whether it was for profit or just out of love,” Lee said.

With her passion for creating art and her business-minded approach to expressing intellectual creativity, ���ϲ�����’s entrepreneurship program encourages Lee to pursue both passions while supporting her to make her dreams a reality.

Lee is originally from Waldorf, Maryland, where a friend of her mother’s recommended she consider ���ϲ����� for soccer. From there, she booked a campus tour, where she immediately fell in love with the campus, the town and the people who lived there. On her campus tour, Lee was introduced to the scholars in the Odyssey Program as well as Honors Fellows. She would later apply to and earn a place in both programs.

“Once I heard everything the Odyssey Program had to offer, it made me want to be a part of ���ϲ����� even more.” She notes the strong connection with her future Odyssey mentor, “sealed the deal” on her desire to come to ���ϲ�����.

At ���ϲ�����, Lee is now pouring her artistic and driven energy into the campus she loves so much. On top of being an Honors Fellow and a scholar in the Odyssey Program, through the Leo M. Lambert Odyssey Program Scholarship, she is a member of Omicron Delta Kappa Leadership Honors Society and a member of the President’s Student Leaders Advisory Council. She is the president of her sorority, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, and a member of ���ϲ�����’s Track and Field team. In her free time, she enjoys expressing her artistry, turning to drawing and painting as well as listening to music and journaling.

“Both scholarship programs have awarded me with experiences that helped cultivate me in ways that the classroom can’t,” she said.

Through her hard work and numerous opportunities for involvement, Lee was able to continue her studies while still expressing her passion for creativity she’s had since she was a child. Being a scholar in the Odyssey Program allowed her to make the most of the opportunity to study in Florence, Italy, where she has been able to express herself through painting, a dream since she was little.

“I couldn’t believe I was there without having the financial burden,” she said. “It was an amazing opportunity for me to continue my passion for art. I made it a mission to tap into that side of myself while I was abroad.”

As a result of her experiences abroad, she now works as a part of the Isabella Cannon Global Education Center as a student coordinator and ambassador.

This extracurricular growth continues with her recent research on the enhancement of black Entrepreneurs within Alamance County, and making sure they’re receiving the proper recognition and support they deserve.

“My research has definitely helped me prepare myself for what I see in the future with my career, as I love helping people,” Lee said.

These extracurricular experiences have led Lee to be a well-rounded student and future employee. As a result of her hard work in optimizing her opportunities at ���ϲ�����, she was able to develop and maintain a promising relationship with Ernst & Young, one of the four largest and most influential professional services networks globally. She earned two summer internships with Ernst & Young and eventually secured a full-time offer as a Technology Risk Consultant under the Assurance Practice.

During her time with Ernst & Young, ���ϲ����� alumni Lisa Kelly and Regan Glembocki became her unofficial mentors. This overwhelming amount of success and prosperity Lee worked for at ���ϲ����� makes her feel unstoppable.

“I feel like I can literally do anything,” said Lee. “I stepped onto this campus, accomplishing my dreams that I genuinely didn’t think would happen until years and years later. It makes me emotional.”

Lee has been able to see the Odyssey scholarship affect her family in a full-circle way. As she is preparing to graduate at the end of this year, she is hopeful to leave a legacy with her younger brother, who is now enrolled as a freshman.

“As the years have gone on, I’ve grown in more appreciation of the scholarship and especially seeing the benefits it has on my little brother, even though he just got here, it’s been amazing to see.”

Her little brother, Carlos Lee Jr., is now enrolled at ���ϲ����� with the same Odyssey scholarship she is so grateful for.

“When I experienced it, I couldn’t help but think, I want this for him when he gets to college, and the fact that he has it is more than what I could ever ask for,” Lee said.

Due to this full circle of opportunity for her family, Lee has made it a goal to one day donate in the same way to help another underfunded student achieve their academic and personal goals.

“I’ve been set up for so much success that it pours into generational success within my family,” said Lee. “I can’t wait to give somebody else an Odyssey Scholarship in the future. That’s how much this program has impacted me.”