This fall, 15 students from across the state will bring their talents to the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, as the newest class of Haslam Leadership Scholars. With passions for business, engineering, health care, journalism, and politics among other fields, they hope to use their studies to serve communities in Tennessee and around the world.

The Haslam Leadership Scholars program was established in 2008 with a generous gift from Jimmy and Dee Haslam and Jim and Natalie Haslam.

“In University Honors, we provide transformational learning experiences that help each Haslam Leadership Scholar understand and build their academic and leadership potential—to attract, cultivate and retain future leaders of Tennessee,” said Pat Akos, associate vice provost of student success and executive director of the University Honors programs. “The generosity of the Haslam family, our talented faculty and staff, and the unbounded potential of these students are extraordinary. This latest cohort epitomizes the program’s mission, and I eagerly anticipate witnessing their transformative leadership unfold at UT.”

Scholars receive an endowed scholarship that covers tuition, fees, and housing. They participate in an exclusive leadership-focused curriculum and a fully funded collaborative study abroad program and are guaranteed a paid internship at a leading Tennessee company or organization.

Program participants have received national recognition including Rhodes, Fulbright, Goldwater, Truman, Udall, and Gates Cambridge scholarships. Graduates have gone on to attend top graduate schools and hold high-profile positions in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors.

Among the 15 is Emily “Emma” Collard of Bell Buckle.

At Cascade High, Collard served as president of both the Student Council and the National Honor Society chapter. She was a member of the Bedford County Superintendent’s Student Advisory Council, Leadership Bedford, and the Tennessee Department of Education’s Student Engagement Council.

She strengthened her leadership abilities as a Girls State delegate and ambassador to the Hugh O’Brian World Leadership Congress. She was also a key leader in helping to organize Youth Leadership Bedford’s Benefit for Hope last April, which helped raise funds to provide resources for student mental health.

Collard intends to major in geographic information science and minor in meteorology. Passionate about weather from the age of seven, she hopes to pursue a fulfilling career as an aviation meteorologist.

In her free time, she loves volunteering at food drives, recording new episodes for her weather podcast, practicing for swim meets, and playing piano.