Kenzie Stewart, a psychology peer tutor at UNCG’s Academic Achievement Center (AAC), has been awarded the North Carolina Tutoring and Learning Association Tutor of the Year Award.
Kenzie began at the AAC as a psychology tutor during her undergraduate studies. This year, she was named the program’s lead tutor, a promotion that reflects her skill, reliability, and growing leadership, and the trust that staff and students have placed in her. But what her supervisor says sets her apart is something harder to measure: how she builds relationships.
“Kenzie doesn’t treat tutoring as a transaction,” said Fallon Puckett, assistant director for tutoring and testing services. “She brings real care to every student, and it shows.”
It shows in the number of students who come back. Many return specifically to work with Kenzie, setting up recurring sessions to deepen their understanding of psychology rather than seeking one-time help. That kind of sustained engagement reflects trust, rapport, and instruction that goes beyond surface-level review.
Her impact reaches beyond her own sessions. On her own initiative, Kenzie has built partnerships with psychology faculty, creating more direct pathways for students to find tutoring support. In the process, she has helped reduce the stigma some students feel about asking for academic help, a meaningful contribution to the center’s mission and to the culture of the department.
The award recognizes the qualities Kenzie brings to her work every day: strong subject-matter ability, genuine care for students, initiative beyond her formal responsibilities, and leadership among her peers.
Congratulations, Kenzie!
