Thirty one business students were recognized Friday, April 21 during the 2017 Walker College of Business Honors Convocation, held in the Plemmons Student Union on the campus of Appalachian State University.
Sponsored by Yadkin Bank, the WCOB Honors Convocation brings together students with the best academic performance and top students participating in organizations to be honored for their outstanding performance. The event is also the forum to announce the top student overall for the academic year.
"The top student overall award for the Walker college was a difficult choice this year since all of the students being recognized have accomplished amazing things in their career at Appalachian," said Walker College Associate Dean Sam Formby. "So this year we recognized two students as top students overall for the walker college."
The 2016-17 overall top student award went to two students: James Marlowe and Ronald "Trey" Worley, III.
Both students possess a nearly perfect GPA and have studied abroad, completed internships and worked with organizations locally to put in practice the things they have learned at Appalachian. Both have tutored or reached out to help others with the knowledge and experience they have even gained while in school, and both expressed a strong desire to reach out and help others succeed.
Marlowe is an accounting and finance and banking major earning a minor in Chinese. When asked about future plans, Marlowe said, "I plan to do my best and I want to get to a place where I feel like I'm making a sizable impact on the world."
Worley is an economics and management major earning a minor in entrepreneurship. When asked about future plans, Worley commented, "Ideally, I will work in an international environment where I can apply my economic knowledge to solve real world problems."
Top student undergraduate honorees by major were:
- James Grantham Marlowe, Accounting
- Kyle A. Harrison, Computer Information Systems
- Ronald Wayne Worley, III, Economics
- Jarrett Ray Jacumin, Finance and Banking
- McCarthy Myers Shelton, Finance and Banking
- Ashley Avril Ellman-Brown, Hospitality and Tourism Management
- Cameron Michael Hill, International Business
- Alexandria Scott Moxley, Management
- Jenna Lynn Blas, Marketing
- Kara Lynn Carmichael, Marketing
- Vance Nicholas Langdon, Risk Management and Insurance
- Aristotle Raymond Moulopoulos, Risk Management and Insurance
- Anthony Mark Lawson, Supply Chain Management
Two graduate students were honored for outstanding performance in their respective graduate programs. They were:
- Zachary Paul Lachance, Master of Science in Accounting
- Anthony Joseph Berghammer, Master of Business Administration
Several of the nearly two dozen student organizations housed in the college had the opportunity to honor a top student who has made a major impact or has shown great leadership during their tenure with the organization. Those students are:
- Amanda Darlene Sears, Accountant of the Year
- Leanna Marie Ferguson, American Marketing Association
- Ashley Elizabeth LaManna, Appalachian Supply Chain Club
- Kolbert Alton Meyer, Association of Information Technology Professionals
- Austin Karl King, Association of Information Technology Professionals
- Sage Rhea Buccafurri, Association of Student Entrepreneurs
- Levi Jacob Barker, Beta Alpha Psi Scholar
- Taylor Kathleen Pasin, Executive Impact
- Stephen Andrew Potter, Finance Student Association
- Katherine Carlile Christie, Hospitality & Tourism Management Student Association
- Matthew Robert Hawks, International Business Student Association
- Jacqueline Anne Hundley, National Association for Business Economics
- William Curtis Eskridge, Project Management Group
- Cecilia Teresa Yanez, Pruett Award for the Outstanding Risk Management and Insurance Graduate
- Chandler LaQuavis Harshaw, Society for Human Resource Management
- Jabari Akiem Myles, Walker Fellows
Richard Sparks, a two-time graduate of the Walker College of Business-having earned his bachelor's degree in healthcare management (1976) and his MBA (1978) from Appalachian-delivered comments during the event. Sparks is president and CEO (retired) of Appalachian Regional Healthcare System (ARHS), and, since his January 2017 retirement from ARHS, Sparks has served as a lecturer of International Leadership and Ethics in the college.
Sam Formby announced the undergraduate and graduate program student winners, Walker College Associate Dean Martin Meznar announced the student organization student winners, and Walker College Dean Heather Norris presented certificates to each individual. Approximately 175 students, friends and family members and faculty representatives attended the event. A reception for the honorees and their families took place prior to the event.
