Two students and one faculty member were honored Thursday, April 2, at the 2009 Bateman Awards, the only school-wide award selected entirely by students.
"This is a great honor because it shows that those you are in the trenches with, and with whom you associate daily, appreciate what you do and who you are," says Jarem Hallows, a senior business management student who received the award for outstanding undergraduate student. "I didn't understand how big this award was until I saw the other finalists and read their bios. It's overwhelming."
Each year the Merrill J. Bateman Outstanding Student/Faculty Award is given to one undergraduate student, one graduate student and one faculty member for their support of the Marriott School, service to the community, professional development activities and participation in networking. Earl K. Stice, professor of accounting, received the award for outstanding faculty member, while Annie Iden, a second-year MAcc student from Riverton, Wyoming, won outstanding graduate student.
"I feel the weight of responsibility coming out of this program to go out and serve my community," Iden says. "I don't feel like I came to the Marriott School on my own merits, but that my experience here is preparation for what is to come."
Former Marriott School dean Merrill Bateman addressed the large audience in the Tanner Building and shared his thoughts about the award. For Bateman, the award is significant because it was named in his honor when created in 2002 while Bateman served as Brigham Young University President.
"It's humbling to have something named after you," he said. "Now I have to worry about what happens to you (the award recipients)."
At the awards ceremony, Bateman spoke about the need for continued service beyond church responsibilities. He said previously his priorities centered on work, family and church service. But after serving as Presiding Bishop of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as a member of the Presidency of the Seventy, and as president of the Provo, Utah Temple, he recognized the good church members can provide outside their normal sphere.
"Your community needs your help in a way that the church cannot cover," he said. "May you go out in the world, set your priorities right, take care of your families, be faithful to the church and contribute in a meaningful way in your communities to help this world become a beautiful place."
Both Hallows and Iden expressed how this award and Bateman's remarks inspired them to want to make a difference after graduation.
"I realize how I want to step it up — I need to serve in my community and reach out to individuals," Iden says. "Listening to President Bateman made me think more about what I can do one-on-one rather than going out to accomplish something big."
The Marriott School is located at Brigham Young University, the largest privately owned, church-sponsored university in the United States. The school has nationally recognized programs in accounting, business management, public management, information systems and entrepreneurship. The school's mission is to prepare men and women of faith, character and professional ability for positions of leadership throughout the world. Approximately 3,000 students are enrolled in the Marriott School's graduate and undergraduate programs.
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Writer: Sara Elizabeth Payne