"It's still all very surreal to me," said Vanderbilt Student Government President Joseph Williams after being awarded the title of Outstanding Senior during halftime at the Homecoming football game on Saturday.

The Outstanding Senior Award, the only award on campus that is both merit-based and student-selected, is given to a leader who has positively impacted the organizations he or she is involved in and the Vanderbilt community as a whole.

"Winning Outstanding Senior was just an unbelievable experience for me," said Williams. "I'm honored and humbled by receiving this award. I couldn't have ever imagined a Vanderbilt experience like the one I've had, but I'll be thankful everyday for the rest of my life for the people I've met, the experiences I've had and the love I've received."

Other seniors said they felt just as honored to be named one of this year's finalists.
"There are so many noteworthy students, especially in our senior class, and I feel privileged to represent such a great student body as a finalist," said finalist Amanda Scott.

"The class of 2009 has so much diverse talent, and I don't really think you can sum it up in just 10 people," said Marty Pendleton. "In the end, I just think that being a part of an outstanding graduating class is the biggest honor of all."

The candidate selection process included an application and essay. Forty candidates were selected by a panel of judges and called in for an interview. After the interview, the judges selected 20 candidates who were voted on by the student body.

This year, the top 10 candidates selected were Lauren Page Black, Emma Cofer, Jennifer Hirsch, Kellianne Kleeman, Brad Lawrence, Pendleton, Scott, Sarah Scott, Sean Tierney and Williams.