“One that beareth a torch shadoweth oneself to give light to others.” These words from the University of Tennessee Volunteer Creed act as the backbone to the Volunteer spirit and the abstract criteria for what it takes to garner recognition on the level of a recipient of the Torchbearer Award.

The seven men and women who received that honor in late March have lit the way for others as UT students and leaders. The 2024 recipients of the Torchbearer Award were Jack Duncan, Carragan Fields, Sarah Lange, Abby Ann Ramsey, Alvin Robertson, Harrison Van Eaton and Rylie West. 

Jack Duncan

Majoring in economics and mathematics in UT’s College of Arts and Science, Jack Duncan has already begun to affect policy in Tennessee through his time at UT. Just this past year, he was selected on behalf of the Baker School of Public Policy and Public Affairs to attend a roundtable between the U.S. and Japan in Washington, D.C. Duncan has interned with the Tennessee Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations, been the co-director of Student Government Association’s Student Government Affairs Committee and served as the co-editor-in-chief of Pursuit, UT’s undergraduate research journal. After graduation, Duncan plans to work as a research assistant for two years at the Federal Reserve Board of Governors in Washington, D.C., and hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in economics.

“I have been really fortunate to get the full value of UT,” Duncan said. “And I’ve tried my best to help other students get that as well. My hope is that students that I’ve interacted with and that I know, or just anyone in general, can extend a hand to try and help other students to thrive in the places where they can be the most successful.”

Carragan Fields

From Wilder, Tennessee, Carragan Fields has had a focus on agriculture and community engagement for the entirety of her collegiate career. Studying agricultural leadership with a minor in food and agricultural business, she has represented Tennessee on a number of levels. Recently, she appeared at the Tennessee Ag Leadership Forum in Washington D.C.

“Hard work is definitely accurate in the fact that it wasn’t easy, but it was a fun easy,” Fields said. “Everytime someone would be like, ‘Carragan, you’re always doing something,’ and I’d say, ‘Yeah, but I love what I do.’ I loved telling people about the university and helping others find their little niche group that makes UT home for them. As big of a school as UT is, it’s amazing to know that everyone can find a community and a place where they belong.”

Currently working in the Tennessee State in Nashville, Fields plans to continue her work there for the foreseeable future before eventually going to law school. Her hope is to one day use the experience she’s gaining now to represent the agricultural industry in the courtroom. This is an effort Fields feels is both difficult yet necessary, though hard work has yet to deter her from her passions. If her time at UT showed her anything, it is that work and enjoyment can sometimes be synonymous.

Sarah Lange

A Clarksville, Tennessee, native, Sarah Lange has studied addiction and behavioral neuroscience with a pre-medical concentration during her time at UT. An undergraduate research assistant in the Department of Psychology, she’s already been awarded the Advanced Undergraduate Research Award during her junior year and continues to do research in the Medical Center’s Department of Surgery. 

Lange is also the president of the Undergraduate Research Ambassadors and co-editor-in-chief of Pursuit, UT’s first scholarly peer-reviewed journal. Off campus, she’s interned with the Metro Drug Coalition and at Kim Health Clinic as a volunteer medical assistant. 

Abby Ann Ramsey 

Studying journalism and electronic media and religious studies, Abby Ann Ramsey has brought an eclectic set of views and skills to The Daily Beacon, where she serves as editor-in-chief to contributors and staff. Aside from student journalism, she’s also begun to explore national news and politics. In the spring of 2023, she attended the White House Correspondents Dinner through the Carter Holland Memorial Scholarship, as well as worked for Canopy Atlanta and Atlanta Magazine. When she’s not writing or editing articles from her staff, Ramsey is usually found at Involuntary Sports Party, UT’s improv troupe, or volunteering at the local nonprofit Thrive.

The Knoxville native has also received her fair share of accolades through scholarships and awards. She’s a recipient of the Department of Religious Studies Joan Nicoll Riedl Book Award in her junior year, which goes to support a major in the department once a year. 

Alvin Robertson

Alvin Robertson spent his undergraduate tenure in the College of Education, Health and Human Sciences studying therapeutic recreation with a minor in public health. He’s been a part of the Dean’s Undergraduate Advisory Board for his college, as well as an undergraduate teaching assistant in the Department of Anthropology. 

His reach on campus extends far past his studies, however. Robertson is a resident assistant on campus, a member of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, a VOLbreaks leader, an ambassador for the Jones Center of Leadership and Service, and a campus ambassador for the VolCorps Program. With the 1794 Scholars Program, he assisted in being the inclusion director for the Honors Student Engagement Council in the spring of 2023. After graduation, Robertson plans on venturing to the University of Florida to pursue a master’s degree in higher education. Humbly, he credits the faith and the push of his mentors, including Dean of Students Byron Hughes, for a lot of his successes. 

“My mentors truly are the reason I want to be so involved,” Robertson said. “Because they poured a lot into me, and they gave me a lot. I want to be the person that they were to me to other college students. Long term, I’d want to be a dean of students because of my mentors.”

Harrison Van Eaton

A neuroscience major from Hixson, Tennessee, Harrison Van Eaton has spent a large chunk of his time on campus in the corner of fraternity row, as well as the Office for Sorority and Fraternity Life. Shortly after joining the Alpha Zeta Chapter of Beta Upsilon Chi, he was awarded IFC’s New Member of the Year Award in 2022 and has excelled in that context since. He held the position of vice president for health and safety in OSFL, BYX’s outreach chairman for their Matthew 5:16 Initiative all before being awarded the Pillar Award for Dedication and Service to IFC in 2023. 

Fraternal excellence is only one aspect of Eaton’s impact. He’s also partnered with Basic Needs, a group dedicated to equitable resources on campus, as well as the Emerald Youth Foundation, a Christian group focused on bringing after-school care to at-risk youth in the community. For Eaton, service isn’t just an extracurricular with time requirements — it’s a calling.

“To be a good member of the community, you actually have to be a part of it,” Eaton said. “I can’t just have issues with the campus or the city. I have to be part of the solution. The only way to make real change is to actually put your heart into it. If you don’t do that, you’re really not doing much, in my opinion. But more importantly, I feel a need to serve because of my faith. I’m a Christian, and that’s a huge pillar of who I am, is that I’ve been called to serve. If I’m not loving people or serving people, then I’m not really living out my faith correctly.”

Rylie West

The sole Californian and student-athlete on this year’s recipients list, Rylie West is a leader on and off the field. A catcher and outfielder for Lady Vols softball, West has also pursued a sports focus through her extracurriculars as well. She is a show host for Player’s Lounge, a student-athlete-led media platform, as well as works for VFL Films, CBS and SEC Network. All of this while maintaining an excellent standing academically, West was named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll in the spring of 2023 and has been on the Dean’s List since she first stepped onto campus.

West’s impact and volunteer spirit have been felt internationally. Along with her peers, she traveled to Rwanda in July of 2022 as a member of the VOLeaders Academy, completing over 30 service hours with charitable organizations. West also serves as a member of V.O.I.C.E., a community of Black student-athletes on campus. 

Since 1931, the Torchbearer Award has continued to be the highest honor a UT undergraduate student can receive. It highlights leadership and excellence in the classroom and beyond. Campus service, community service and an evident dedication to bettering those around them and those who will follow in their footsteps are all taken into account for this prestigious award. The following students not only blazed a light toward the path ahead for UT but have worked tirelessly so that the campus and Knoxville as a whole have a better idea of what it truly means to be a Volunteer.