Student Spotlights
HID Student Spotlight
Gabriel Simerly is one of just 25 student veterans nationwide to be selected as part of the third
class for the prestigious VET (Veterans Employment Trajectory) Initiative. Simerly
grew up in Unicoi and said he was looking for “a new direction in life” when transitioning
from high school to adulthood and decided to join the military. He spent several years
in the Army National Guard and enrolled at ETSU to study psychology and sociology.
Read more>>
As he heads into his final year as an ETSU undergraduate, Aamir Shaikh of Knoxville is making the most of opportunities to give back to the student organizations
that have shaped his college experience. Aamir will graduate from ETSU’s College of
Pub lic Health in May 2020 with a bachelor’s degree in health sciences. Aamir also
is a visible presence on campus as the 2019-2020 Student Government Association (SGA)
president. Read more>>
Darack Nan 
to is many things. He’s an inventor, a graduate student, a personal trainer, an Olympic
hopeful and a leader. He’s determ ined to show those in his home country of Togo that
he can succeed at both his academic and athletic aspirations . Darack is building
a prototype of his invention, the Eco Smart Can, while balancing his time between
graduate classes and training to become an Olympic athlete. His goal is to become
the first person from Togo to compete in bobsled skeleton at the winter games in 2022.
Read more>>
When Keyana Miller graduates from ETSU, she hopes her legacy will be one of encouragement and inspiration
to younger students, and that she will continue to have a positive impact on the university
as an alumna. “I want to motivate our incoming students,” says ETSU’s 2017-18 Student
Government Association president. “If I make a positive impact on just one student,
and they decide to join SGA or any other student organization, I'll know I've done
my job as president. Read more>>
Every collegiate athlete knows the challenge of striving for excellence in both sports
and the classroom. One of many students who embody ETSU Intercollegiate Athletics’
motto, “Excellence Every Day,” is Brooke Baxter. Baxter graduated in May, earning a B.S. in chemistry and health sciences with a
concentration in microbiology with a 4.0 grade point average while playing on the
Buccaneers’ Southern Conference champion softball team, and is set to begin medical
school this fall at ETSU’s Quillen College of Medicine. Read more>>
Jessica Dunker always loved stories when she was growing up. She delighted in the bedtime stories
her parents read to her, and she was reading her first chapter books by second grade.
“It was my sophomore year when I realized I wanted to be an English major, because
I loved reading and writing so much,” she said. “It was always my favorite course
in high school. I read a book in which the protagonist was an editor, and I thought
that was very interesting. So I decided to pursue that professionally. Read more>>
Brittney Stubbs has a passion for service - local, national and international. Opportunities made
possible through ETSU student organizations to work with new cultures and communities
have heightened her awareness of social justice issues and inspired her to become
a physician. A native of Crossville, Tennessee, Brittney is a University Honors Scholar
and an Honors-in-Discipline Scholar. She recently returned from an Alternative Spring
Break Experience in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, focusing on urban poverty. Read more>>\
Nils Bresinsky is a lover of libraries. It runs in the family. Both his father Andreas and his mother
Birgit have Ph.D. degrees in biology. Now retired, his father taught biology at the
University of Regensburg in Nils’ native Germany for most of his professional life.
A passion for learning has always driven the Bresinsky family. “The library is one
of my favorite spots on campus, since I care a lot about academics, history, and research,”
says the East Tennessee State University graduate student, who will earn a master
of arts degree in History this spring. Read more>>
Since launching the program in 2007, ETSU men’s soccer has seen a lot of success from
its student-athletes both on and off the pitch. Junior Samuel Sevigny, a native of Quebec, Canada, is a leading example of how the ETSU men’s soccer team
has achieved greatness, and at the same time, provided its players with professional
opportunities to advance their careers. This past January, Sevigny was selected as
the only ETSU student to attend The Washington Center for the 2017 Presidential Inauguration
Program. Read more>>
There was never really any doubt about where Jordan Smith would go to college. She lived in Johnson City until her family moved to Knoxville
when she was 9, so she was acquainted with the East Tennessee State University campus
and heard a lot about it from her parents, both of whom are alumni. “I always wanted
to go to ETSU,” she says. “That was the first school that popped in my mind, and when
it came time to decide where I would go, I just couldn’t get this school off my radar.
Read more>>
East Tennessee State University’s December 2016 graduates are breathing a collective
sigh of relief this week, reveling in the indescribable sense of freedom that comes
when the weight of classes, studying, writing papers, completing group projects, and
taking exams is first lifted from their shoulders. For most grads, that relief is
fleeting as they enter the workforce or begin graduate school. For Hannah Greene, post-graduate life holds the excitement of a Peace Corps assignment. Read more>>
When he first entered ETSU as a freshman, Dustin Gilmer thought grades were the most important thing. While grades are indeed very important
to this honors-in-discipline physics major, he’s learned that other opportunities
afforded by college life are highly beneficial, as well. After his freshman year,
Gilmer participated in ETSU’s Brenda White Wright Emerging Leaders Academy. “That’s
the defining moment of my college career,” he said. “It really brought me ‘out of
my shell’ as a student. Read more>>