P.D. Soros Fellowship for New Americans

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Na Eng, 1998

Chief Communications Officer, People For the American Way

Na Eng is an immigrant from Cambodia

Fellowship awarded to support work towards an MIA in International and Public Affairs and Media and Communications at Columbia University

Na Eng is an Emmy Award-winning storyteller and seasoned social impact executive.

She currently serves as the chief communications officer at People For the American Way, an advocacy organization that advances freedom, justice, and democracy. Prior to joining People For the American Way, she served in senior roles at the McKnight Foundation, the American Refugee Committee (now called Alight), the Minnesota Council on Foundations, and Mercy Corps. In those positions, she managed media relations, strategic communications, and external affairs. 

She refined her instinct for storytelling over two decades as a journalist in New York City. Producing for PBS and CNBC, she traveled the globe to translate complex public policy issues into understandable human narratives. Her stories received prestigious honors, including an Emmy Award, an Edward R. Murrow Award for Best Documentary, and several National Headliner Awards.

Na was born in Cambodia just as the genocidal Khmer Rouge regime came into power. She lost her father and many other relatives during the genocide. When she was five, her family fled the war-torn country to resettle as refugees in St. Paul, Minnesota. 

Na graduated from Columbia University and earned a Bachelor's degree and a Master's in International Affairs in an accelerated dual degree program.

She is a trustee of the NAACP Foundation and has served on other nonprofit boards, including the Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library. The Fulbright program has recognized her as a distinguished alumni, and she is the first Asian American to be inducted into her high school's Hall of Fame. 

Education
  • MIA International and Public Affairs, Media and Communications | Columbia University 1999
  • BA History, Sociology | Columbia University 1998
Work History
  • People For the American Way, Chief Communications Officer | May 2022 - PRESENT
  • McKnight Foundation, Director of Communications | May 2015 - May 2022
  • CNBC, Producer | January 2010 - July 2014
  • NOW on PBS, Producer | December 2002 - April 2009
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