MPA Student Honored with 2022 Buckwalter Internship Award

PROVO, Utah – Jan 11, 2023 – William Livingston, an MPA student, has been named the 2022 Buckwalter Internship Award recipient by the MPA program in the BYU Marriott School of Business. Livingston received official recognition, along with the $1,500 award, during the program’s Alumni of the Year dinner on November 10, 2022. 

A second-year MPA student, Livingston interned with the city of Alpine over summer 2022. He was tasked with creating a full financial analysis for the city covering the past 20 years. He then used that analysis to develop a forward-facing plan for the financial future of the city. His work helped his colleagues understand how the city’s financial situation evolved over the years and how to prepare for the future.

Livingston also went out of his way to assist other Alpine city employees with any projects they were working on. “William made great contributions to our city through his work. His value as an intern was more than we could have asked for,” says Carla Merrill, mayor of Alpine.

Shane Sorensen, Alpine city administrator, was also impressed by Livingston’s initiative and the quality of his work. “William is a driven individual who loves to be busy and involved in whatever he is doing,” says Sorensen. Livingston was invited to continue working for the city after his internship.

BYU Marriott helped prepare Livingston to make an impact during his internship. “I love that BYU Marriott’s MPA program is a skill-driven program,” says William. His professors helped him cultivate hard skills, such as data analysis and public finance, that translated directly into his assignments for the city of Alpine.

The MPA awards committee also named two honorable mentions for the award: Lindsay Harper and Julienne Boyce Smith. Harper worked with the G20 Interfaith Forum Association, and Smith worked as a finance associate for Utah County. They each received a $750 award and were recognized for the work done with their respective organizations.

The award is named after Doyle W. Buckwalter, former associate director and internship coordinator of the Romney Institute. The accolade honors students who performed exemplary work during their time as an intern.