VALDOSTA – Valdosta State University congratulates students for receiving the Spring 2024 President’s Award for Academic Excellence.
Release:
McKenzie Simpson of Quitman, Georgia, is the recipient of the Spring 2024 President’s Award for Academic Excellence for the College of the Arts at Valdosta State University.
The President’s Award for Academic Excellence is presented to a high-performing graduating student in each of VSU’s six colleges — Harley Langdale Jr. College of Business Administration, College of Nursing and Health Sciences, James L. and Dorothy H. Dewar College of Education and Human Services, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, College of Science and Mathematics, and College of the Arts.
Simpson will be recognized during VSU’s 237th Commencement at 7 p.m. on Saturday, May 4, on the Main Campus Front Lawn. She will graduate summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in Art.
“I am very honored to receive this award and represent the College of the Arts,” she shared. “The professors in the Department of Art & Design at VSU truly care about their students and go above and beyond to nurture us and prepare us for the reality of being an artist and making a living out of this career. It can be intimidating to enter the workforce, but with the support of my professors, I feel ready and confident to start this new chapter in my life. During my time here I have made lifelong friendships and built relationships with both my peers and my faculty. I am excited to see where life takes me, but I never want to forget where I started — here at Valdosta State University.”
As a student at VSU, Simpson partnered with Evelyn Davis-Walker, associate professor in the Department of Art and Design, for a Blazer Summer Research Institute project titled “International Design: A Beginner’s Guide to Adapting Graphic Design for Global Markets.” Her artwork earned honorable mention at VSU’s 2023 Juried Student Art Competition, third place at the 2022 university-wide Celebration of Inclusion Student Art Exhibition, and third place at the VSU’s 2022 Juried Student Art Competition.
Simpson also earned repeated Dean’s List recognitions and was a Zell Miller Scholar.
After graduation Simpson plans to take a gap year and pursue artist residencies and internship opportunities in printmaking. She then hopes to return to school and pursue a master’s degree in art with a focus in printmaking, “which will work toward my eventual goal of becoming a printmaking professor.”
Her supportive family includes parents Jay and Edwina Simpson and dog Remi.
Lindsey Le Strickland of Homerville, Georgia, is the recipient of the Spring 2024 President’s Award for Academic Excellence for the James L. and Dorothy H. Dewar College of Education and Human Services at Valdosta State University.
The President’s Award for Academic Excellence is presented to a high-performing graduating student in each of VSU’s six colleges — Harley Langdale Jr. College of Business Administration, College of Nursing and Health Sciences, College of the Arts, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, College of Science and Mathematics, and James L. and Dorothy H. Dewar College of Education and Human Services.
Strickland will be recognized during VSU’s 237th Commencement at 7 p.m. on Saturday, May 4, on the Main Campus Front Lawn. She will graduate summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Education in Middle Grades Education Mathematics and Science.
“It is truly a blessing to be receiving such a high honor,” she shared. “Upon reflecting on my years at VSU, I have had a wonderful experience. I have enjoyed my time here, and I have had a multitude of experiences and opportunities that I would not have had elsewhere. I could not be more thankful of everyone who has had a hand in my journey, from my caring and supportive faculty and staff to my classmates, lifelong friends, and family to, most importantly, God. I would not be the person I am today if it weren’t for the major role that the Lord has played in my life. I would be nothing without Him, and I thank God for the provisions He has given to me.”
As a student at VSU, Strickland was an active member of Baptist Collegiate Ministries, where she served on the Freshman Leadership Team and as the Outreach Team leader. She was invited to speak at the 2023 Educators Rising National Conference and to serve her fellow Blazer future educators as a member of the Professional Learning Committee and Academic Committee of the Valdosta Sullivan Scholars Program.
Strickland gave back to her Blazer Nation community as a volunteer at VSU’s STEAM Center for Applied Creativity and Innovation, the Boys & Girls Club of Valdosta, and Open House events with VSU’s Dewar College of Education and Human Services.
Strickland’s commitment to academic, leadership, and service excellence resulted in her earning repeated Dean’s List recognitions and the VSU Department of Teacher Education’s Outstanding Student Teacher in Middle Grades Education Award. She was a Sullivan Scholar and a Zell Miller Scholar.
After graduation, Strickland plans to teach mathematics at Hahira Middle School, where she hopes to instill a love of learning in her students. She wants to further her education in the near future, “so that I can learn more ways to help my students be successful not only in the classroom but also in life, wherever it may take them.”
Her supportive family includes parents Lenora and Raymond Strickland, sister Stephanie Smith, and brother-in-law Arthur Smith.
Shantia “Tia” Keondra Thomas of Macon, Georgia, is the recipient of the Spring 2024 President’s Award for Academic Excellence for the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at Valdosta State University.
The President’s Award for Academic Excellence is presented to a high-performing graduating student in each of VSU’s six colleges — Harley Langdale Jr. College of Business Administration, College of the Arts, James L. and Dorothy H. Dewar College of Education and Human Services, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, College of Science and Mathematics, and College of Nursing and Health Sciences.
Thomas will be recognized during VSU’s 237th Commencement at 7 p.m. on Saturday, May 4, on the Main Campus Front Lawn. She will graduate summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing.
“I feel accomplished and proud of myself,” she shared. “Receiving this honor is rewarding for the time and dedication that I put into my studies.”
As a student at VSU, Thomas served the university community as a tutor for nursing majors and as a member of Minorities in Nursing.
She spent countless hours learning and perfecting her skills in VSU’s on-campus STEP (Simulated Training Encounters with Patients) Center and gained valuable real-world experience as a nursing student volunteer serving the needs of underserved populations in the region.
Thomas’s commitment to academic and service excellence resulted in her earning repeated Dean’s List honors, the Dorothy Cobb Levy Nursing Excellence Scholarship and the Lettie Pate Whitehead Foundation Scholarship. She was a HOPE Scholar.
After graduation Thomas plans to pass the NCLEX, the national examination for the licensing of nurses, and pursue a career as a registered nurse in Emergency Care Center at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia, a Level I trauma center and one of the most active emergency departments in the world.
Her supportive family includes parents Mekita and Robert Thomas.
Callie Reid of Lakeland, Georgia, is the recipient of the Spring 2024 President’s Award for Academic Excellence for the College of Science and Mathematics at Valdosta State University.
The President’s Award for Academic Excellence is presented to a high-performing graduating student in each of VSU’s six colleges — Harley Langdale Jr. College of Business Administration, College of Nursing and Health Sciences, College of the Arts, James L. and Dorothy H. Dewar College of Education and Human Services, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, and College of Science and Mathematics.
Reid will be recognized during VSU’s 237th Commencement at 7 p.m. on Saturday, May 4, on the Main Campus Front Lawn. She will graduate summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Applied Mathematics, a Minor in Applied Statistics, and a Certificate in Data Science.
“Coming from a very small high school, the thought of attending a university can be overwhelming and intimidating,” she said. “I had always been a good student, but I worried about the transition from being a big fish in a small pond to where I would be in the big pond.
“During my time at VSU, I have been blessed with many great professors who invested their time in me and my education. I am grateful for each of them, especially, Dr. Jose Velez, professor in the Department of Applied Mathematics and Physics.
“This honor means a lot to me. There are many hard working, intelligent, and deserving students. I am extremely honored and humbled to be chosen to receive this award.”
As a student at VSU, Reid served as president of the Math Club and vice president of Pi Mu Epsilon and Alpha Chi: National College Honor Society. She volunteered at Northside Baptist Church as a member of the Audio-Visual Team and College Leadership Board, and she enjoyed an opportunity to help VSU identify updated recruitment and retention ideas.
Reid conducted significant research on unemployment rates in the United States during the global health crisis known as COVID-19 using topological data analysis and persistence theory. She presented her findings at the 2022 Georgia Undergraduate Research Conference, the 2023 Joint Mathematics Meeting, the 2023 VSU Undergraduate Research Symposium, and the 2023 Mathematical Association of America regional luncheon. She presented her research on predicting a mammal’s sleep based on the mammal’s weight at the 2023 VSU Undergraduate Research Symposium and shared the results of her machine learning analysis of unemployment rates in the U.S. at the 2024 Joint Mathematics Meeting and the 2024 VSU Undergraduate Research Symposium. Her research received financial support from the VSU College of Science and Mathematics, VSU Student Government Association, American Mathematical Society, and Pi Mu Epsilon.
Reid’s commitment to academic, leadership, research, and service excellence resulted in her earning repeated Dean’s List recognitions, the Elizabeth Joy Lohmar Mathematics Scholarship, the South Georgia Alumni Chapter Scholarship, the 2024 Outstanding Mathematics Student Award, the 2024 College of Science and Mathematics Outstanding Student Award, and multiple first- and second-place honors at VSU’s 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024 Pi Mu Epsilon mathematics contests.
Reid plans to continue her education in the fall and pursue a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Applied and Computational Mathematics at Florida State University, where she was awarded a teaching assistantship. She hopes to someday become a mathematics professor.
Her supportive family includes parents Lamar and Denise Reid and siblings Rena and Jacob Reid.
On the Web:
https://www.valdosta.edu/administration/advancement/event-services/commencement/
https://www.valdosta.edu/csm/
