MacKenzie Culp

About MacKenzie Culp

Ever since I was young, I’ve had a profound interest in the entertainment industry. While most children probably aspired to be a doctor, firefighter, secret agent, or marine biologist, I wanted to be Hannah Montana. Her songs were too catchy, fashion too iconic, and persona too electrifying for me not to dream of emulating her one day. Although this phase eventually passed, my affinity for the arts, visual media, and celebrity culture remained-hence my involvement in chorus and theater throughout middle and high school, embarrassing attempt at producing an album (which was far more recent than I care to admit), and voracious appetite for literature. On the flip side, I’m incredibly perturbed by the growing social inequality around us. I’ve had the fortune of working to combat it through my involvement in various identity organizations (e.g. Black Student Union, Queer-Straight Alliance, DukeNAACP, and Duke Business Oriented Women) and learning about its foundations in my sociology courses. I consider figures like Eduardo Bonilla-Silva, Michelle Obama, Trevor Noah, Kimberlé Crenshaw, and Bryan Stevenson my inspirations, and I seek to have a similar positive influence on the world. Recently, I’ve been intrigued by the ways in which my two foci intersect. I’ve realized that media, especially advertising, is a particularly salient area in which inequality is reproduced-primarily because of its reliance upon and propagation of cultural tropes. For this reason, I believe that it is an important site of social change, and one in which I could have a tremendous impact.

Experience

1. Client Service Specialist

   McGriff

   Jun 2025 — Present · Durham, NC, US

Education

• Duke University

  Bachelor of Arts - BA, Sociology and Spanish Double Major; Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies Minor

• Universidad Carlos III de Madrid

  Estudios Hispánicos

• Duke University - The Fuqua School of Business

  Master's of Management Studiess