Senior Hank Carter (Russellville, Ala.) was recognized this week as the 2009 “IT Student of the Year” at the inaugural Nashville Technology Awards at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center. He was introduced and honored before an audience of more than 400 leaders of the technology community in Middle Tennessee. The awards recognized individuals and companies whose success has helped grow Nashville and the surrounding areas into a hub for technology.
Carter is an honors student in Computer Science, working on a thesis in information security. On campus he has been active in the Mathematics and Computer Science student group and recently participated in the programming competition at Tennessee Tech. He is a member of Alpha Chi and received the 2009 Hale third-year student award. An Eagle Scout, Carter spent the summer at Sea Base in the Florida Keys leading 15-17-year-old scouts on week-long high adventure explorations. He is currently applying for graduate programs. In addition to his abilities and talents in Computer Science, Carter is an accomplished pianist (a music minor), a black belt in martial arts, a ballroom dancer and has taken up fencing.
In addition to Carter’s award, alumnus Chip Hayner (’04, Digital Media Studies) was named Software Programmer / Engineer of the Year. Hayner currently serves as director of technology for Centre{source} Interactive Strategies. As one of the most senior C{S} employees, Hayner started as a developer and now heads the development and creative departments.