Alumni Volunteer Awards celebrate individual impact
In celebration of all of our amazing volunteers, and to say thank you to those exceptional individuals who do so much to support us all, we opened our ‘University of Exeter Alumni Volunteer Awards’ to nominations for the second year this spring.
Staff, students and fellow alumni all came forward to nominate alumni volunteers involved in an array of projects both in the UK and internationally. It was tough for the judging panel (made up of student, staff and alumni representatives) to narrow down a very deserving selection. However, we are delighted to announce our winners:
Debbie Hill Award for the Exceptional Support of Students
This award celebrates individuals who go above and beyond in their support of students, inspiring them with their passion and commitment. Our 2019 winner is Natasha Bellinger (LLB Law, 2011) for her long standing, committed and varied support for law students at Exeter. Natasha began volunteering her time to support students almost as soon as she graduated. Her passionate encouragement of future law students through our Pathways to Law programme and tireless support of our current law students through a range of employability activities impressed the judges.
Natasha said: “Thank you to the panel for selecting me as this year’s winner. I feel honoured to have been chosen and was completely taken aback at being shortlisted. It is an absolute delight volunteering with the University because of the fantastic and enthusiastic people I get to work with on a regular basis and it is great seeing the University go from strength to strength.”
Many congratulations to our other shortlisted nominees in this category:
Alex Campbell (Law, 1997) for his long-standing and exceptional support of the Career Mentor Scheme.
Chris Filsell (English 2016) for his enthusiastic and valuable support of the student media society, XTV.
Kathleen Lund (PhD Politics 2005) for her outstanding support to our mock interview programme and going above and beyond as a Career Mentor.
Doug Wass (Law, 1996) for going above and beyond in his support of our mock interview programme for law students.
Nicholas Bull Award for the Exceptional Support of the Alumni Community.
This award celebrates individuals who go above and beyond in their support of their fellow alumni, making a significant contribution to our flourishing community, either regionally or internationally. Our 2019 winner is Archit Garg (MSc. International Management, 2014) for his enthusiastic and committed support of both the MSc International Management cohort across the world and the wider alumni community in India. Nominated for the second year running, the judges were impressed by the number of fellow alumni who got in touch to nominate Archit and their supporting testimonials, demonstrating his success in bringing together Exeter alumni both in India and across the world.
Archit said: “Associating with the University has been a wonderful learning experience for me. I enjoy liaising with local alumni, helping to arrange business and social events and answering the queries/questions of prospective students. I try to engage with each alum on a personal basis whether they are based in India or abroad. I would like to thank all the alumni for nominating me and supporting my efforts for the University of Exeter.”
Many congratulations to our other shortlisted nominees in this category:
Tim Ireland (Chemical Engineering, 1984) for his committed support of our hockey and golf alumni communities.
Chris Tang (Law, 1996) for his passionate and driven approach to supporting our alumni network in Hong Kong.
Sandra Brunnen (Philosophy 1976) for her long-standing dedication to the alumni of the ‘Out of Doors Society’.
John Gilbert (Economics 1972) for hiscommitment to, and professional organisation of, activities to support sport in our alumni community.
The awards are named in honour of two long-standing alumni volunteers, formally recognising the commitment and support that they have given us over many years.
Debbie Hill has given invaluable help and guidance to the development of the alumni volunteering programme over many years, ensuring volunteers are engaged in meaningful, satisfying activities and are recognised for their incredible work.
Nicholas Bull has been giving his time and expertise to Exeter for almost two decades. Over the years he has taken on a wide variety of roles and activities to support our staff, students and his fellow alumni and has worked tirelessly to ensure that the alumni voice is represented across the University.