At 8 p.m. on Tuesday more than 100 students gathered in the Live Oak Ballroom as the brothers of The Epsilon Eta Chapter of Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc. and Men of Integrity presented a Tribute to a Black Woman 2011: Giving Thanks in Praise of Black Women.
This is the sixth year a Tribute to a Black Woman has been held, the event is meant to acknowledge black women on campus who have gone above and beyond the call of duty. These women have excelled academically, within their organizations, and in the community.
Jerry Johnson is a member of both Iota Phi Theta and Men of Integrity. He was also one of the chairs of this year's event.
"These type of award shows are important to acknowledge the females on campus for their contributions to UCF and the community. A lot of stuff happens behind the scenes that a lot of people don't really know about, for example the different philanthropy events that they do and the many different organizations they're a part of," said Johnson a senior health service administration major.
These women and organizations were nominated by their peers, faculty and staff.
The men of Iota Phi Theta and Men of Integrity presented 14 awards. Among those awards were Greek of the Year, Outstanding Leader, Faculty/Staff of the Year and Woman of the Year.
Greek of the Year was given to Shaenor Harding, a senior social work major representing the ladies of Zeta Phi Beta sorority and Chrystan Mays, a senior health sciences major, representing the ladies of Delta Sigma Theta sorority.
Outstanding Leader was awarded to Nancy Panin, a senior health service administration major, for her efforts in the Black Female Development Circle, African Student Organization, and Zeta Phi Beta sorority.
Faculty/Staff of the Year was awarded to Germayne Graham, associate director of student leadership development.
The last award of the night was Woman of the Year, this award was given to Aeryel Williams, a senior interdisciplinary studies major and president of the Caribbean Student Association.
"It means a lot to me to have won woman of the year because they gave out a lot of awards, and a lot of individuals were recognized, but for me to actually have won the award for Woman of the Year, I feel incredibly blessed," Williams said. "It's very important to recognize the minority leaders on our campus at UCF because their doing a lot of great things, their volunteering, being peer mentors and really changing lives."
In addition to the many accolades given out, there were also a number of performers and a keynote speaker.
The performers included Back in the Day Band, and UCF's own Shanequa Bernard and Eric Chandler who both performed spoken word.
The Keynote speaker of the night was Shanta Barton-Stubbs, founder and director of New Image Youth Center.
Although many were there to receive awards, they still didn't take a night off from finding a way to serve the community.
The brothers of Iota Phi Theta and the Men of Integrity collected 25 backpacks and various school supplies for the New Image Youth Center.
The New Image Youth Center is located in the Parramore community, and it is a youth center committed to helping inner-city youth build a "new image", achieve their dreams and excel academically.
The students who won the award weren't the only ones who benefitted from the night, many students left feeling inspired as well.
Rachelle Gelin was glad she attended the event.
"I really enjoyed the event, my favorite part was the keynote speaker because she was informative and I learned a lot from her," the senior health service administration major said. "We don't have a lot of black events going on so I thought this award show was very respectful."
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