Tennessee Tech trustees hear student spotlights on fundraisers, research and statewide leadership
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Summary
Four Tennessee Tech students — a transfer football player who runs a cancer fundraiser, a record-setting powerlifter, a doctoral researcher in microplastics, and the state FFA president — were introduced to the Board of Trustees. Trustees and the president praised their campus contributions.
Chair Harper introduced four students at the start of the board meeting: Jamieson Wharton, Justin Schlenkert, Sahera (Sahara) Abu Maryam and T. Wayne Williams, each singled out for recent accomplishments and campus engagement.
Jamieson Wharton, a junior interdisciplinary studies major and transfer football player from Sumner County, described Football for the Cure, a fundraiser he started at age 9 after his aunt died of ovarian cancer. Wharton said his event splits proceeds between the American Cancer Society Hope Lodge in Nashville and the Vanderbilt Ingram Cancer Center. "Half of our money goes to the Hope Lodge and half... to the Vanderbilt Ingram Cancer Center," he told trustees.
Justin Schlenkert, a junior in the College of Business from Marion County, described his powerlifting achievements: a 330-pound paused bench press, a 470-pound squat and a 530-pound deadlift and a 1,330-pound total, which the board noted included new state and national records. Trustees encouraged follow-up on his national competition results.
Sahera (Sahara) Abu Maryam, a doctoral chemical engineering student and graduate research assistant, described her award-winning research on microplastics in wastewater treatment; she won first place in her category at the American Institute of Chemical Engineers national meeting in San Diego. She said her work builds on earlier graduate research and internships with Hazen and Sawyer in Nashville and that advanced oxidation is a promising area under study to reduce microplastics.
T. Wayne Williams, a freshman in the College of Agriculture and the outgoing 2024–25 Tennessee FFA state president, said he intends to study agricultural communications with a pre-law focus and described his work representing more than 33,000 Tennessee FFA members. Trustees noted Williams’s role in securing the governor’s full funding request for FFA and 4‑H referenced during the meeting.
Trustees and President Oldham praised the students for community engagement, research and leadership. The introductions preceded the board’s business agenda and were followed by routine minutes approval and committee reports.
The spotlight items were presented at the start of the meeting during the students’ appearance before the board; trustees asked questions about fundraising distribution, research methods and upcoming competitions or events.