Kenya Downing is a senior research assistant in the child welfare department. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree from The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG) in psychology with a minor in social work. During her time at UNCG, she had the honor of serving as a research assistant in the Psychology and Social Work Department, working with both qualitative and quantitative data. As a McNair Scholar, Kenya had the opportunity of showcasing her proficiency in research, for which she was awarded the Community Based Undergraduate Research and Creativity Award. Her research interests include racial socialization, how parents are preparing their children for discrimination, and kinship care among African American youth.

Being a first-generation college graduate has been her biggest and proudest accomplishment thus far, despite the roadblocks she faced along her journey.