Washington College's Natalie Butz Named Finalist for the Sophie Kerr Prize

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Sophie Kerr Finalist, Natalie Butz

CHESTERTOWN, MD (05/07/2012)(readMedia)-- Washington College is pleased to announce that Natalie Lauren Butz '12, daughter of Sam and Leslie Butz of Falls Church, VA, is one of five finalists for the famous Sophie Kerr Prize, the largest undergraduate literary prize in the nation, this year valued at more than $58,000.

Butz, an English major who minors in History, Psychology and Creative Writing, has served as Editor-in-Chief of the student newspaper, The Elm, worked in the Writing Center, participated in drama productions, joined the Douglass Cater Society of Junior Fellows, and achieved distinction as a member of Phi Beta Kappa. She traveled to Tanzania as part of the College's summer program there and spent a semester studying in Ireland. Her writing portfolio includes excerpts from a historical novel-in-progress, short stories and articles published in The Elm, the Chestertown Spy and Washington College Magazine. "Her creative work is distinctive for its commitment to research, and she tackles difficult topics such as race, class and gender with real honesty," judges from the Sophie Kerr Committee said of her portfolio. Butz graduated from George C. Marshall High School.

Butz and the other four finalists, all graduating seniors who submitted portfolios of their writing to be judged, will travel to New York City for a special program and reception on May 15. There, in a private club in midtown Manhattan, they will read selections from their portfolios and then hold their breath as internationally renowned novelist Colum McCann announces the winner.

In holding the announcement ceremony in New York, the College acknowledges the importance of the city as the literary capital of the world and the personal journey of Prize benefactor Sophie Kerr. A native of Denton, MD, Kerr moved to New York as a young woman and built a successful 40-year career as a national magazine editor and writer. Her townhouse on East 38th Street became a literary salon for her friends in journalism and the arts. At her death, she bequeathed much of her estate to Washington College, with the stipulation that half its income would be awarded annually to the senior showing "the most ability and promise for future fulfillment in the field of literary endeavor."

Founded in 1782 under the patronage of George Washington, Washington College is a private, independent college of liberal arts and sciences located in colonial Chestertown on Maryland's Eastern Shore.