Trey Quealy
On Track for Success
TREY QUEALY’S INTEREST IN SUPPLY CHAIN began with a race. As student council president in high school, Quealy faced a dilemma when he ran out of pizzas in the concession stand during the homecoming game. “It was my job to find as many pizzas as possible, as quickly as possible, at the best price,” he says. Quealy enjoyed the challenge and told his mom about it that night. “She said, ‘Maybe you should think about majoring in supply chain.’”
Quealy hasn’t looked back since. Now a senior in supply chain management at Haslam, he says the past four years have been packed with new experiences, challenges, and friendships.
A runner since middle school, Quealy is part of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville’s track and field and cross-country program. “Joining this team is part of what drew me to Haslam,” he says. “After high school, I had to make a decision about whether to give up the sport. I realized I wanted to keep running, and am proud to do that here.”
Off the track, Quealy actively seeks new opportunities and experiences. He’s completed three internships in the past four years and participated in several student programs, including the Leadership Knoxville Scholars program, Rocky Top Roundtable, and the Leadership Studies Advisory Board.
“The college does a tremendous job of presenting students with opportunities, but it’s up to us to take advantage of them,” he says. “My motivation to do that has really pushed my academic and professional career.” During his freshman year, Quealy received an email about an opportunity to apply for a free trip to Seattle through Boeing’s Accelerated Student Experience (BASE) program, a four-day event for undergraduate students. Always eager for a chance to travel, Quealy signed up, interviewed, and was accepted. That trip led to a summer internship with Boeing the following year.
In his junior year, Quealy showed up at a roundtable with P&G. “I came because I’d heard they were giving away free Tide pods,” he laughs. “We had a great conversation and they offered me an internship for the following summer.” That internship in P&G’s supply chain offices resulted in a full-time placement after graduation, where he will work as an initiative operations leader at their Cincinnati headquarters.
Quealy’s long-term goal is to become the CEO of a Fortune 500 company. “Haslam has instilled the desire in me to dream big, work hard, and strive for success,” he says.
