Taylor Burke, a senior veterinary science and technology major from Altona, Illinois, was named the recipient of the fall 2025 Beth Maloan Outstanding Student Employee Award.
The award was presented at the Department of Agriculture, Geoscience and Natural Resources (AGNR) graduation breakfast Dec. 13.
Burke is a student worker for the department and the West Tennessee Animal Disease Diagnostic Lab. Her main duties for the department are assisting the business manager, Callie Smithson, in various ways. including filing important documents, assisting with reconciling procurement cards and travel transactions, answering phone calls, providing campus tours for potential AGNR students and assisting professors and other staff as needed to prepare for events and classes.
Burke works 10 hours a week for AGNR and about 10 hours a week at the West Tennessee Animal Disease Diagnostic Lab. As a student worker at the diagnostics lab, her duties and responsibilities include performing necropsies on animals that are brought to the lab, routine care for the sheep, goats and other farm animals on the AGNR Teaching Complex, preparing and organizing for the animal science lab and assisting the campus veterinarians and Veterinary Technology Lab instructors as needed in the veterinarian science and technology area.
“Taylor has taken initiative in streamlining the department’s filing and document-management processes by organizing important financial and administrative records,” said Smithson in her letter of nomination. “She ensured quicker retrieval, reduced errors and improved workflow for the business manager and faculty. Her attention to accuracy in reconciling procurement cards and travel documentation has minimized discrepancies and helped maintain compliance with university financial procedures.
“One thing that I have found very important and impressive with Taylor is the cross-departmental collaboration that she has created. By working effectively in two different departments, Taylor bridges academic and laboratory operations. Her ability to manage tasks in both settings ensures stronger coordination between the AGNR department and the diagnostic lab, enhancing overall efficiency in both units.”
The Beth Maloan Outstanding Student Employee Award is named for the late Beth Maloan, longtime UT Martin director of budgeting and payroll, who was a strong advocate of student employment. It recognizes exemplary work ethic and commitment to the university. The award is given each semester to a student nominated by his or her supervising office or department. The award includes a $1,000 cash award and an engraved plaque.
To be eligible for this award, the student must have been employed at the university for a minimum of one year, must be a full-time undergraduate and must carry a minimum cumulative grade-point average of 2.5.
The recipient is selected based on problem-solving and decision-making skills, dependability, interpersonal skills and communication, teamwork, customer service, productivity, self-motivation and on- and off-campus working relationships.
The award was established by the university in May 2001 soon after Maloan died after a long bout with cancer. Maloan worked at UTM from 1976 to 2001 and served as the director of finance and budgeting from 1988 to 2001. She also taught classes in what is now the College of Business and Global Affairs.
PHOTO: Taylor Burke (center), a senior veterinary science and technology major from Altona, Illinois, is shown receiving the fall 2025 Beth Maloan Outstanding Student Employee Award. Also shown are Mike Maloan (left), chancery court judge for Weakley and Obion counties, and Callie Smithson, business manager for the Department of Agriculture, Geosciences, and Natural Resources, who nominated Burke for the award.
