(JACKSON, Miss.) – Terry L. Woodard, Jackson State University National Alumni Association president, has been chosen to receive the inaugural Legacy of Leaders National Alumni President of the Year Award from the National Black College Alumni Hall of Fame Foundation, Inc.
Woodard is a 1988 graduate of Jackson State. He will receive the national honor at the organization’s annual Hall of Famers Awards Luncheon on Sept. 28 at the Atlanta Hyatt Regency.
“I am extremely honored and humbled to be chosen for the Legacy of Leaders Awards as I continue to strive to carry on Jackson State’s legacy of changing lives through teaching, research and service,” Woodard said.
The Hall of Fame induction ceremony honors HBCU graduates for their distinguished service to their country, their alma mater and for excelling in their field of endeavor.
A native of Gloster, Miss., Woodard holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Jackson State with a concentration in business management. He holds certification in Leadership from the Mississippi Institute for Management and Executive Development and Cornell University.
While a student at Jackson State, Woodard was active in numerous campus clubs and organizations. Upon graduation, he was employed for two years as business manager of the JSU Universities Center before joining the Kroger Co. in Houston, Texas. He currently works as a district manager for Sodexo, Inc., where he is responsible for 10 accounts in Mississippi and Arkansas.
In 1994, Woodard joined Clark Atlanta University where he was active in numerous campus and national professional organizations. Under his leadership, the Metro Atlanta Alumni Chapter of JSU was deemed the premier chapter of all JSU Alumni Association chapters.
For his wide-ranging work on behalf of JSU and the Alumni Association, Woodard has received numerous awards including Alumnus of the Year in 2005. In May, he was elected to his second term as president of the JSU National Alumni Association on a three-point platform:
- Strategic positioning of the association to be prepared to sustain local, state, national and global decisions that affect Jackson State;
- Educating alumni and friends on the importance of active involvement and contributions that benefit Jackson State
- Increasing membership and financial support to the Alumni Association to benefit JSU.
Woodard has personally donated thousands of dollars to Jackson State to assist with scholarships, student activities and athletics, and is a member of JSU’s Diamond Level Club and the Clay-Lackey Society.