Cohort votes Tessa McSwain as "MVP"

Tessa McSwain is the 2014 recipient of the Joy R. Gibson MATC Cohort Award.

The award is voted on by MATC students in their second year and honors the cohort’s “MVP” – the classmate who most exhibits the qualities that help make a cohort successful, such as peer support, collaboration and leadership. It also comes with a stipend and recognition on an engraved plaque in Carroll Hall, home of the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media.

“The cohort award is named in honor of my mother, and I am thrilled that Tessa is the recipient,” says MATC academic director Rhonda Gibson. “Tessa’s positive attitude, willingness to pitch in, and thoughtful contributions to the MATC classes have made her an outstanding choice.”

Thrilled to receive the news, Tessa writes:

“Thank you to the 2014 MATC Cohort for selecting me as the recipient of the Joy R. Gibson Award. I am still shocked by the news and so humbled by my selection. I remember thinking during the first semester of the program that I might have gotten in a little too deep and that the rigor of the program was way more than I was prepared for. The truth is I did get way more than I was prepared for, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Not only has the MATC program prepped me for what lies ahead in my career and to be a leader in an ever-changing technology-driven world, but also set me up with a cohort of absolutely inspiring individuals from whom I have learned so much and will continue to admire well beyond the virtual walls of the program. Any of these truly wonderful students are equally deserving of this award, so to them I say thank you with the deepest respect and gratitude I can offer.

I would also like to thank the MATC's fearless leaders, the faculty and staff who have made this program so worthwhile and such a success. As the lone non-resident student in this cohort, I have felt so welcomed and supported and know that this program is as academically rigorous and intensely applicable as it is because of the leadership of our faculty and staff.

I also can't go without saying a huge thank you to friends and family, especially my husband, for supporting me in this program. I wouldn't have made it this far without their support and I share this award with them, too.

It was a dream of mine to attend UNC-CH and root for the Tar Heels, and I will always be thankful that I was given that opportunity though the MATC program.

Thank you and GO HEELS!”