TSU finalist in categories for “Best Choir,” “Male Athlete of the Year,” and “Best Women’s Team of the Year”
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Tennessee State University has been nominated as a finalist in four top categories for the 5th Annual AARP HBCU Digest Awards. The winners will be unveiled July 10 during the AARP National HBCU Media Week to be held on the campus of Hampton University.
Among the categories TSU will be vying for include awards for “Best Choir,” “Male Athlete of the Year,” “Women’s Team of the Year,” and “Female President of the Year.”
A record 430 nominations from institutions, alumni and students were submitted for the 2015 edition of the awards. Finalists are annually selected based upon the impact of nominees’ achievement on institutional development, and for media coverage earned for the institution by way of the nominee.
Winners are selected by an academy of former HBCU Awards winners, former and current HBCU presidents, alumni, faculty, students and journalists covering HBCU issues for local or national outlets.
“The HBCU Awards is the first national awards event to recognize the influence and impact of HBCUs on American culture,” said HBCU Digest Founding Editor Jarrett L. Carter Sr., who created the event in 2011. “The awards seek to recognize and crown winners in the fields of leadership, arts, athletics, research, and community engagement.”
The TSU finalists (names, categories, areas of award) include:
Tennessee State University President Glenda Glover – “Female President of the Year” (Highest Honor)
Dr. Glenda Glover began serving as president of Tennessee State University on January 2, 2013. She has advanced a five-point vision that includes: 1) academic progress and customer service; 2) fundraising and partnerships; 3) diversity and inclusion; 4) shared governance; and 5) business outreach.
Her educational development began as a student at Tennessee State University, where she majored in mathematics. After graduating with honors with a Bachelor of Science degree, she pursued the Master of Business Administration at Clark Atlanta University. She then completed her doctorate in business at George Washington University, and later earned her law degree from Georgetown University.
President Glover is the former dean of the College of Business at Jackson State University in Jackson, Mississippi and served as chairperson of the Department of Accounting at Howard University. She is a certified public accountant, an attorney, and is one of two African-American women to hold the Ph.D.-CPA-JD combination in the nation.
President Glover has been a corporate board member of three publicly-traded corporations and is the author of more than 100 articles and papers. She is regarded as one of the nation’s experts on corporate governance. In 2013, President Glover was named to Diverse Issues in Higher Education’s prestigious list as one of the “Top 25 Women in Higher Education.”
Since joining TSU, she has offered dozens of scholarships to top high school seniors, raised millions of dollars in support of the university’s programmatic, research and service efforts, engaged new business and industry partners, and has established TSU Safety Commission made up of administrators, faculty/staff, alumni, students and community leaders to address campus security concerns.
New Direction Choir – “Best Choir” (Student Activities)
Tennessee State University’s New Direction Choir proved it is the best college gospel group in the country after receiving top honors at the National College Choir Explosion this year in Louisville, Kentucky. Competing as one of eight finalists from among several college gospel choirs, the TSU New Direction Choir won the coveted title as the “Nation’s Best Gospel Choir.” The group also won the “People’s Choice Award” as the audience’s favorite group. This is the group’s third straight finish as champions and runners-up in national competitions in the last four years. In 2011, they won first place in the Fourth Annual National Black Collegiate Alumni Hall of Fame Gospel Choir Competition in Atlanta, competing against four HBCU choirs. Two years later in 2013, the group won the Regional Runner-Up title in Verizon’s How Sweet the Sound Gospel Choir Competition. In addition to vocal presentation, New Direction has mastered diction, intonation, tone quality, appearance, stage presence and audience appeal.
Nick Thrasher – “Male Athlete of the Year” (Athletic Excellence)
Nick Thrasher started all 12 games at middle linebacker and amassed a team and career-high 128 stops (69 solo). He was also a terror to opposing offenses, notching 11.5 tackles for loss and recording 3.5 sacks. The Morrow, Ga. native also excelled in zone coverage and broke up three passes. He even recorded first career interception against Florida A&M (Sept. 27), taking it all the way back for a touchdown. The senior-captain anchored the OVC’s top total defense (303.2 yards per game) and pass defense (153.3 yards per game) and helped TSU to a No. 4 FCS ranking in sacks per game (3.58). Thrasher led the Tigers to a 6-6 record which gave Big Blue three consecutive non-losing seasons, a feat that had not been done since 1984-86. With his stellar senior campaign, Thrasher moved up to second-place in tackles in the TSU record book over the course of the season, finishing with 358. At the end of the year, Thrasher was named College Sports Madness OVC Defensive Player of the Year and a Second Team and Third Team All-American by Phil Steele and The Associated Press, respectively.
Tennessee State University Women’s Basketball Team – “Best Women’s Team of the Year” (Athletic Excellence)
The TSU Women’s Basketball Team snagged the 2015 Ohio Valley Conference Tournament Championship. TSU defeated four-time defending champ UT Martin, 64-60, on March 7 to claim the program’s first OVC title in 20 years. The victory also earned the Lady Tigers a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
The Lady Tigers were honored at the Tennessee State Capitol April 8, received and celebrated with a standing ovation by the Tennessee House of Representatives. Once the team, coaches and administrators made it to the front of the room, TSU alumnus, Rep. Harold M. Love, Jr., presented the team with a Resolution for their accomplishments.
Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331
About Tennessee State University
With more than 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 45 undergraduate, 24 graduate and seven doctoral programs. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.