Bonnie Lynch isn’t afraid of speaking her mind, even as one of the youngest people in the room.
Lynch, a student at the UT Health Science Center in Memphis, was selected in March of 2013 for the student representative position on the UT Board of Trustees.
“I had a phone interview with a representative from Gov. Haslam’s office, and a month or so later, I was both honored and humbled when I was called to accept my position on the Board,” Lynch said.
Nominees are selected from student governments, with the position rotating between UT’s campuses in Knoxville, Chattanooga, Martin and the Medical Center in Memphis.
The first year of the student representative’s board membership is considered an “orientation year” meant to familiarize the selected candidate with meeting formats and the voting process.
Now in her second year, Lynch is a voting member and offers student perspective on issues and initiatives relevant to daily college life. Engaging these issues, she said, is her primary objective as as a voice for the UT student body.
“My main responsibility is to stay informed on the work of the university, to prepare for and attend meetings and to speak up when I have an opinion on an issue,” she said.
While Lynch admitted she has had to make some challenging decisions in the last two years, she said the recent Haslam family donation and renaming of the James A. Haslam II College of Business was an act that makes her “proud to be a Tennessee Vol.”
Her time as the Board’s student representative has also provided her with the proper perspective required for an aspiring medical professional.
“I want to be viewed as an M.D. candidate with a voice,” Lynch said. “The Board members have gone above and beyond to make sure this is the case, but at first, I definitely felt that I had something to prove. I had to discover for myself when it was appropriate to listen and when to speak.”
Katherine High, the vice president for academic affairs and student success, said Lynch’s first year of listening and observing the processes of the Board was critical. High serves alongside Lynch on the Academic Affairs and Student Success Committee, and said she experiences Lynch’s effectiveness as a student representative firsthand.
“Bonnie is my go-to person to get a read on how students feel about [serious] issues,” High said. “I fully expect her to continue to represent all students and to keep the Board apprised of the student point of view.
“She is a quick study and often she can bring a perspective to the board the others may not have considered.”
Lynch’s position is held for two years, and High emphasized that an experience like Lynch’s satisfies the university’s mission to equip students as emerging professionals.
“Some (former student representatives) have been offered jobs with the university after graduation and are superb members of the UT team,” High said. “Others have gone to graduate school or begun their careers and we trust their board experience will give them a leg up. They have had experiences that should make them stand out and be successful in the future.”
As she concludes her role as a student sound-board, Lynch said she is working on developing her skills for a future in the medical field.
“I like to think that in order to help people you have to know their story,” she said. “You have to enjoy listening to differing opinions based on different experiences. I think the Board has taught me how to communicate better with those that have had completely different life experiences.”
