The Extraordinary Campus Leadership and Service awards recognize graduating students who are extraordinary campus leaders for their significant service to others.
Thomas Carpenter
Through his college career, Thomas Carpenter has been an engaged student leader. He joined the Central Program Council as a freshman and eventually served as president, seeing the organization through significant positive changes. He has been involved in the Student Government Association and the Student Life Council, and he is the vice president of Students for Sensible Drug Policy, an organization he founded. This past summer, Carpenter interned in the Tennessee office of US Representative Steve Cohen. He is a classics major with a political science minor from Collierville, Tennessee.
Matthew Klein
Matthew Klein has been involved with the Campus Entertainment Board, a committee of the Central Program Council. He’s used his position as chairperson of the board to expand the Vol Night Long Program, which offers a healthier alternative to the traditional nightlife scene on campus. He also works in the Office of Orientation and Transition, the Center for Leadership and Service, and the Center for Student Engagement. He has served as a resident assistant and a Leadership Knoxville Scholar. A nutrition major, he is from Johnson City, Tennessee.
Maria Martinez
Maria Martinez emigrated from Columbia to Greenville, Tennessee as a child. She is a modern foreign language and literatures major with a concentration in Hispanic studies and a minor in Portuguese. She served with the Center for Leadership and Service as an Emerging Leader. She has also been an Alternative Break trip leader, a senior intern, and a student assistant. Her commitment to diversity was evident when she helped create opportunities for student to work within the Hispanic community during Alternative Break. She is “the first to volunteer help and the last to seek recognition,” according to her recommenders.
Joseph Perry
Joseph Perry’s recommenders stress his integrity and ability to inspire others with his positive attitude and willingness to learn. For much of his career at UT, he has served in the Center for Leadership and Service as an Ignite team leader and Ignite Summit student director. He also helped to found the Spark Leadership Team to identify more leadership opportunities at UT. A biology major with concentrations in biochemistry and in cellular and molecular biology, he has a nearly perfect GPA. He is from Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Jinglu Song
As president of the Chinese Students and Scholars Association, Jinglu Song has energized his fellow Chinese students, motivating them to serve UT and creating a bridge between the university and the local community. Under his leadership, the CSSA received the Outstanding Chinese Students and Scholars Association award from the Chinese Embassy last year. A native of Beijing, China, he has worked as an unofficial ambassador at UT, introducing students to his culture through a number of events. He is expected to complete his PhD in industrial and systems engineering this year.
LaSabra Williams
LaSabra Williams, a communication studies major from Nashville, joined the Central Program Council as a member of the Film Committee in her freshman year. By her senior year, she was elected vice president of membership for the Central Program Council, overseeing all recruitment, interviews, and selection of new CPC members. She has also served in the Office of New Student and Family Programs and as an Ignite team leader. She’s been a student assistant in both the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Student Life and the Center for Student Engagement.