As the owner of a 3.86 grade point average in health and physical education wellness science, it’s clear that Arkansas Tech University student Logan Williams has acquired a great deal of classroom knowledge during his time as a student on the Russellville campus.
He’s equally proud of the growth he has experienced outside the classroom.
“I’m from a really small town,” said Williams, a native of Bauxite. “So when I came to Tech, I was probably not the most diverse person. It’s something I feel like we work on our entire lives. I’ve gained so much knowledge through working with Rahk Lash (former ATU resident director), Dr. (MarTeze) Hammonds (ATU associate dean for diversity and inclusion) and E’Quain Rhodes (former ATU resident director). The things they brought to the table and were able to teach me were very beneficial.”
Williams was announced on Tuesday, May 2, as the winner of the 2017 Alfred J. Crabaugh Award for most outstanding senior male undergraduate student at ATU. He will receive the award during spring commencement ceremonies on Saturday, May 13.
“Everybody is different,” said Williams. “You always hear people say that diversity is everybody’s differences, but you can also look at it as diversity is the one thing we all have in common. Learning to work with those differences and people from different backgrounds has been a delightful experience, and it’s also challenged me to be a better person.”
Williams knew from an early age that Arkansas Tech was his university of choice. Attending Wonder Boys’ football games from the sixth grade on connected him to the institution.
“It was that perfect distance away from home so that I could get home if I needed to,” said Williams, “but I could also have that college experience of being on my own for four years.”
Williams has served as resident director for two student housing facilities at ATU during his undergraduate career. He also worked as a resident assistant, in the Roy and Christine Sturgis Academic Advising Center, as a freshman orientation leader and in the role of summer student ambassador.
His extensive work with the Office of Residence Life afforded him the opportunity to give back to the community as a four-year volunteer with Helping Halls, an annual collaborative effort with the Salvation Army to provide holiday meals to the food insecure in the Arkansas River Valley.
Williams counts volunteer service working with students at Center Valley Elementary School in Russellville and winning top peer resident assistant at the conclusion of his sophomore year among his favorite ATU memories.
Of course, not even the Alfred J. Crabaugh Award winner makes it through the successful pursuit of a college degree without a few trials and tribulations. Williams recalls one class in particular as perhaps his greatest academic challenge.
“Dr. (Shelia) Jackson taught kinesiology, which is single-handedly the hardest class I’ve taken in college, but it was totally worth it,” said Williams. “Dr. Jackson does this thing…it’s multiple, multiple choice. You have to get every single one right to get the question right. My first quiz, I think I made a 55, and I was like ‘oh no, what am I going to do?’ Part of it was just learning how to study for Dr. Jackson’s tests. It took me a little bit, but ultimately I finished the class with an A. I just had to study a lot. A lot. It was very rewarding.”
So rewarding, in fact, that Williams decided to stretch himself again when he became a senior and needed an elective class. His choice? Microbiology.
“Dr. (Scott) Kirkconnell has challenged the world around me and made me look at things in a different light,” said Williams. “I’ve learned things I never would have known if I hadn’t branched out and tried everything while I was here.”
Williams plans to pursue a career cardiac rehabilitation therapy after receiving his degree in August 2017.
“I have to give it back to my professors and the staff I’ve worked with,” said Williams when asked for his thoughts about winning the Alfred J. Crabaugh Award. “If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t have been able to make it here. I have had the opportunity to work with a lot of great people. I don’t think we have a cap. We keep progressing as leaders as we go throughout life.”
