Taylor Boyer
Success and Service
Taylor Boyer’s enthusiasm for the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, is infectious. “I’ve always loved UT,” Boyer says. “I grew up a Volunteer, watching the leadership of Coach Pat Summitt.”
Boyer arrived on campus as a freshman determined to meet new people, grow as a person, and find her passions. She entered Haslam’s accounting program, but switched gears after interning with a bridal designer’s marketing department while in London with the Global Leadership Scholars program. “I fell in love with marketing,” she says. “There are so many ways you can apply those skills.”
As an undergraduate, she’s pursued a whole-hearted passion for business, her fellow students, and the Haslam community. “I wanted to make an impact and make the most of my four years here,” she says. “Some opportunities I knew I wanted to be part of, while others I discovered along the way.”
From the start, Boyer says she received support and encouragement from the university community. “I am grateful for those who saw in me the ability to lead,” she says, talking about a residence staff member who encouraged her to take a leadership role in her dormitory. “I know I’m where I am today because of mentors and others pouring into me, and I’ve made it a personal goal to pay it forward.”
Boyer has turned that investment around, expending her energy serving others in leadership roles within the Haslam College of Business, Student Alumni Associates, and Leadership Knoxville Scholars. In 2019, she founded a new organization, Women of Haslam, which is open to both business and non-business majors. “I wanted to create a space that provides networking opportunities and inspires women to develop personally and professionally,” she says. “Our priority is to bring together students and businesswomen who serve as role models.”
While working to bring alumni back as mentors, Boyer similarly enjoyed connecting with younger students as a peer mentor over her college career. “It’s been so rewarding to help them fill out applications for programs or prepare for job interviews,” she says. “I know firsthand that the voice of encouragement—having someone say, ‘I see these qualities in you’—is powerful. I love helping others discover their capabilities and passions.”
Now a senior marketing student with an international business collateral, Boyer plans to pursue a law degree and will enter UT’s College of Law this fall.
In recognition of her hard work and achievements, Boyer was named one of the university’s Torchbearers for 2021.
