The 2025 Volunteer of Distinction awards celebrate the academic achievements of undergraduate and graduate students who received their degrees in Fall 2024 or will receive their degrees in Spring 2025.
Selection of honorees
Colleges, Bredesen Center, University Honors, and Tennessee Tailored* are invited to select undergraduate and graduate students to be honored as Volunteers of Distinction in recognition of their extraordinary academic achievement, community engagement, teaching (graduate students), or research.
The university recognizes seniors who hold the highest GPAs in their colleges as Top Collegiate Scholars. These recipients are determined by the Office of the University Registrar and automatically honored as Volunteers of Distinction.
Nominating a student
Each college or area determines the processes for nomination and selection of recipients. Undergraduate and graduate students who received their degrees in Fall 2024 or will receive their degrees in Spring 2025 are eligible to be Volunteers of Distinction.
To nominate a student, please reach out to the student’s college contact listed below.
Colleges
| College | Internal deadline | Point of contact | Contact email |
| John Stier | jstier1@utk.edu | ||
| College of Architecture & Design | February 23, 2026 | Katherine B. Ambroziak | aambrozi@utk.edu |
| College of Arts & Sciences | Liem Tran | ltran1@utk.edu | |
| Haslam College of Business | Mark Willoughby | mwillou1@utk.edu | |
| College of Communication & Information | Jennifer Tate | jrose13@utk.edu | |
| College of Education, Health, & Human Sciences | Brian Francis | bfranci2@utk.edu | |
| College of Emerging & Collaborative Studies | Nneka Walson | nwalson@utk.edu | |
| Tickle College of Engineering | Michael Danquah | mdanquah@utk.edu | |
| College of Law | Brad Morgan | rmorgan2@utk.edu | |
| Natalie L. Haslam College of Music | Brendan McConville | bmcconvi@utk.edu | |
| College of Nursing | Shelia Swift | sswift@utk.edu | |
| Baker School of Public Policy and Public Affairs | March 6, 2026 | Zoe Webb | zcrihfie@utk.edu |
| College of Social Work | February 16, 2026 | Javonda Williams Moss | jwill488@utk.edu |
| College of Veterinary Medicine | India Lane | ilane@utk.edu |
Other Academic Units
| Academic Unit | Internal deadline | Point of contact | Contact email |
| Bredesen Center | Allie Burns | aburns@utk.edu | |
| University Honors | Talisha Adams | tlawso11@utk.edu |
*Tennessee Tailored has a separate process for identifying winners and does not accept nominations.