Gretel Valdes ’21 has been named the winner of the inaugural Scott B. Smith Award at Linfield College.
Created by the family of the late Professor Scott Smith and funded by hundreds of people who were influenced by Smith, the award is given annually to a first-year student in the Linfield inquiry seminar program (INQS) whose intellect, participation and achievement most exemplify the process of genuine and passionate intellectual inquiry.
The award provides $1,000 at the end of the first year and a second award of $1,000 if the recipient studies abroad while at Linfield. Smith was a professor of European history with a specialty in the Russian Revolution, who died of cancer in 2017.
A creative writing major, Valdes said she is a passionate storyteller and will use her education to pursue her dream of being an author.
“I have always loved the art of storytelling and being able to connect to others through language and meaningful metaphors,” Valdes said. “I want to be able to tell my story and the stories of those around me.”
When she enrolled in the INQS class “From the Beats to the Beatles” with Joe Wilkins, associate professor of English, her writing skills flourished.
“Gretel is that wonderful combination of a student who is very talented, perceptive, quick to make connections among ideas and she is already a very strong writer,” Wilkins said. “But she is also someone who works really hard. She sat right up front every class; she always had her work done; and she always took advantages of opportunities to rewrite papers. That combination is what makes a real intellectual — someone that dives deeply into ideas and to things that matter. She absolutely did that in INQS.”
Growing up, Valdes’ curiosity led her to advanced programs in school. She studied with the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Program in middle school at Roy Martin Middle School and the International Baccalaureate Program in high school at Valley High School, both in Las Vegas, Nev.
“My intellectual inquiry began when I was a kid,” she noted. “I was curious, too curious I thought, but this led me to begin the Baccalaureate programs. Those programs have challenged me not only to inquire but to always keep up with my curiosity and explore questions beyond the classroom.”
To both grow intellectually and maximize the scholarship, Valdes plans to study abroad in Austria next year.
“I am not only incredibly thankful and grateful, but reminded of why I chose Linfield,” Valdes concluded. “Linfield has given me opportunities I don’t think would be possible had I not have chosen a school that focuses on the importance of writing and inquiry.”
—Liam Pickhardt
