Nearly 30 Guilford students, faculty and staff members, and clubs were honored Wednesday with the College’s annual Dick Dyer Awards.

The ceremony is an opportunity for students, faculty and staff to be recognized for making a difference at Guilford.

Nadeem Nasereddin ’26, president of the Guilford Student Body Association and event emcee, told audience members in the Carnegie Room that the ceremony has been a highlight each of his four years at Guilford.

“It’s one of my favorite parts of the year because it gives us a chance to recognize the people and organizations who make this campus what it is,” he said. “The work that gets done across Guilford often happens behind the scenes, but today is about bringing that work into the spotlight and giving the people behind it the recognition they deserve.”

Nadeem wasn’t just the ceremony’s emcee – he also received two awards. Nadeem and Trenton Torain ’26 received the Leadership Legend Award, which recognizes a student’s impact on the Guilford community. Nadeem also shared with Dawson Edwards ’24, ’25 MBA, ’26 MISM the Student Impact Award, which recognizes Guilfordians who see a problem and work to fix it. 

The ceremony has been held annually since 1998 and named for Dick Dyer, a former Assistant Dean of Student Life. In 18 years at Guilford until his death in 1997, Dick impacted hundreds of students’ lives. He recognized and helped cultivate many less obvious or under-appreciated student goals and talents.

Here’s a list of the other awards presented:

Student Awards

Sunshine Award (students most likely to brighten your day): Nadira King ’27, Destini Nyorkor ’26, Zaria Porter ’27

Got Your Back Award (students most likely to offer help wherever needed): Jahmarly Vivens ’27, Trenton Torain ’26

Pop Out Award (students most likely to be at an event): Nadira King ’27, Camille Wilson ’27, Melah Melton ’26

Studious Student Award (students who spent the most time studying and doing schoolwork):
Emma Butts ’28 and Zaria Porter ’27

Student Mentor Award (students who gave the soundest advice): Areli Patterson ’26 and Itzell Mendoza ’27

Energizer Award (students whose energy was seen and appreciated at events): Jahmarly Vivens '27, Max Kiederer '27 and Maeve Dunkerly '27

Gym Studies Major (students in the gym more than class): Pascal Pampu and Josue Fuentes

Ticket Magnet Award (student who got the most parking tickets from Public Safety): Jahmarley Vivens

Mr. or Mrs. Everywhere (student who are all over, campus, Instagram and social media): Destini Nyorkor and Vivian Cavataio

Faculty & Staff Awards

Mr. and Mrs. Worldwide (faculty or staff member with the most connections off campus): Brad Stewart and Liz Nicholson

Out of the Box (faculty member who offers the most unique classroom experience): Dennis Cole

Ja'lessa Morris Club Advisor Award (club advisor of the year): Lisa Cook

The Buzzer Beater Professor Award (faculty member who changes or assigns work at the last minute): Will Pizio

Host Award (faculty that brought the most guests to their class): Wess Daniels

Educator Award (faculty member who offered the best educational event): Lunar New Year Event by Sarah Munro '09 and Eric Mortensen

Student Organization Awards

Rising Star Award (club that improved the most this year): Pre Law

Main Event Award (Clubs with the largest turnouts for an event): Beats, Bites, and Buys sponsored by Campus Activities Board, radio station WQFS, African Caribbean Student Association

Tell Everyone Award (club with the best marketing): African Caribbean Student Association

Creative Genius Award (club with the most diverse and creative events): Black Student Union

Family Matters Award (club that spends the most time together outside of events): Pre-law

Student Organization of the Year Award (Best overall club): Black Student Union