Moving to the Adirondacks was almost coming home for Kevin MacKenzie. “The Adirondacks, being only a half day’s drive away from where I grew up, became the central theme to all our vacations,” St. Lawrence’s assistant registrar explains. “Time spent in the mountains made an impression that intensified throughout my childhood and into my adult decades. 

“By that point,” he continues, “I’d lived in Florida for nearly 20 years and was pretty entrenched.  Over time the heat and exponentially encroaching urbanization directed my mind back to my roots...the Adirondacks and its vast wilderness areas, cooler weather and more defined sense of community.” MacKenzie moved to the Lake Placid area in 2003 and endures the long daily commute to Canton in order to be back in the mountains. 

MacKenzie most enjoys exploring the backcountry and rock slides of the High Peaks region, always with camera in hand.  “Both nature's minutiae and its larger environment intrigue me,” he says. “I love to capture images that are either taken for granted or from remote off-trail areas that are seldom trod upon.”  One of his photos, taken on the St. Lawrence campus, won runner-up in the St. Lawrence Land Trust’s photo contest last spring; his pictures have been published in several venues, and he posts a weekly article for Adirondack Almanack as their outdoor recreation writer. 

At his post in the SLU registrar’s office, MacKenzie is responsible for records maintenance and security, query and report design and graduation processing. “One of the most rewarding experiences has been working with the registrar to implement various technologies,” he says. “But the single most rewarding aspect of my work is helping students achieve their goals and being a part of their senior year, including the graduation experience.”