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Always a great day
to be a Tar Heel
Meet our Tar Heels
“It’s a great day to be a Tar Heel” is a phrase you’ll often hear around Carolina, and for a good reason.
Every day, Tar Heels create a positive impact on the world by improving their communities and inspiring change through their talents. They’re artists, scientists, humanitarians, researchers and innovators doing extraordinary things.
Meet some of our students and learn more about the groups they are active in to find out why every day really is a great day to be a Tar Heel.
Community Builders
Abhishek Shankar
Abhishek Shankar was among several students who worked to launch the UNC-Chapel Hill Asian American Center this fall to share a deeper understanding of the unique experience of being Asian American in the American South with the campus community.
Tori Bobrowski
Carolina senior Tori Bobrowski spends her time outside of class volunteering with Eye Ears Nose and Paws to help train mobility assistance and medical alert dogs.
Collin O’Donnell
Collin O’Donnell enlisted in the United States Army right after high school and was leading soldiers in Afghanistan by the time he was 21 years old. Now as a Carolina senior, the Tar Heel is serving as a leader for student-veterans.
Carolina Association of Black Journalists and the UNC-Chapel Hill chapter of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists
Tar Heels in the Carolina Association of Black Journalists and the UNC-Chapel Hill chapter of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists are making strides in the media industry before they even leave Carolina.
Linking Immigrants to New Communities
Members of Campus Y’s Linking Immigrants to New Communities student group have been hosting English as a Second Language classes and discussion groups virtually this semester to provide a support network and help the new community members better acclimate to the area.
Black Entrepreneurs Initiative: Kenechukwu Uwajeh and Sherrod Crum
Kenechukwu Uwajeh and Sherrod Crum founded the Black Entrepreneurs Initiative to promote, develop and connect Black student-entrepreneurs at Carolina.
Innovators, problem solvers
Carolina innovators are working to solve some of the world’s biggest problems, and students are a driving force behind that mission, with Tar Heels founding and leading their own companies.
Their startups are building diversity, breaking down stigmas and empowering future generations.
Tar Heel innovators
Learn more about Pink STREAMCarolina sophomore Rida Bayraktar founded Pink STREAM to educate, motivate, empower and inspire kindergarten through eighth-grade girls in science, technology, robotics, engineering, arts and math.
Learn more about Stewart's projectsNehemiah Stewart used the skills he honed in the research lab to launch an innovative take on ride-sharing services last year. Now, the Tar Heel is using his entrepreneurial experience to bring a new social venture to life.
Learn more about WotterNiki Vilas Boas and Becca Segal founded Wotter, a company that produces competitive swimming accessories designed exclusively for women, to empower female swimmers and encourage them to stay in the sport.
Tar Heel Researchers
Meet more researchers
Alyssa Grube
A graduate student at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, Alyssa Grube honed her research skills by spending her summers at the Galapagos Science Center where she studied antibiotic-resistant bacteria in the environment.
Derrick Carr
A doctoral student in physics, Derrick Carr is following his childhood passion for skywatching by conducting research that is making important contributions toward identifying characteristics of galaxies very different from our own.
Sondrica Goines
Sondrica Goines always knew she wanted to conduct scientific research. Now as a doctoral student, she's a member of a research group that studies perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, which have been detected in North Carolina’s waterways.
Fresh faces
This August, Carolina welcomed more than 6,000 new Tar Heels to our community — each bringing their own passions, talents and stories. They may be new to the Carolina family, but they're already showing why it's great to be a Tar Heel.
Mary Grace
Throughout her life, 64-year-old Mary Grace has been an activist, a mother, a teacher, a student and a world traveler. And, now, she’s a Carolina student.
Luis Sanchez
After a life-changing accident left Luis Sanchez unable to regain his full ability to walk for nearly a year in high school, his eyes were opened to the world of biomedical engineering. This fall, he began his path to a career in the field as a Tar Heel.
Raven Smith
After working as an emergency room nurse at Duke Regional Hospital and UNC Hospitals for the past three years, Raven Smith returned to the classroom this fall to work toward a doctorate degree in nursing from the UNC School of Nursing.
Max Masiello
A musician and producer with an album release already on his resume, Max Masiello is turning to Carolina to prepare for a future business career in the music industry.
