CANYON, Texas—He spent six months as a seasonal account executive with the Wichita Wingnuts and on Thursday, Nov. 14, Tanner Lakey was recognized as the inaugural Intern of the Year at West Texas A&M University.

Lakey, a senior sports and exercise sciences major from Amarillo, received a $500 scholarship for the spring semester, courtesy of the Mays Foundation, at a special reception at 1 p.m. at the Virgil Henson Activities Center on campus. Lakey also will be submitted for the national Cooperative Education and Internship Association’s Academic Intern of the Year award.

This is the first year for WTAMU to recognize an Intern of the Year. The award is designed to honor an outstanding student who has participated in an internship and made a significant contribution to the employer. He was selected from a slate of 13 finalists.

“We received an overwhelming response from faculty, staff and employers to nominate students for this first-time award,” Steve Sellars, coordinator with WTAMU’s career services, said. “All of the nominees were outstanding, and the committee had a hard time making a final selection.”

Lakey spent the summer selling group tickets to the Wingnut games to companies and organizations. His supervisor set goals for each of the interns, and Lakey surpassed his, reaching 155 percent of his ticket goal and 178 percent of his revenue goal.

“Tanner was one of the hardest working interns that we have ever had,” Brian Turner, group sales manager for the Wingnuts, said. “We ask a lot of the interns, but Tanner would always tackle the challenges head on with that ‘Texas smirk’ on his face. He was named Intern of the Year for the Wingnuts, and there is no better candidate than him to be awarded the same title at West Texas A&M University.”

The Intern of the Year plans to graduate in May 2014. He is a peer leader at WTAMU and active in the Attebury Honors program. Lakey traveled to Cambodia as a freshman with the Readership WT program. He is a LEAD scholar and a member of Phi Delta Theta and the Inter-Fraternity Council. He is owner of Tanner Lakey’s Quality Lawn Care.