The Hilltop Excellence Awards nominations closed on Sunday, Feb. 19.

Every Spring, members of the SMU community are given the opportunity to nominate deserving students and faculty to be recognized at the annual Hilltop Excellence Awards, which will be held on Monday, April 17 in the Hughes-Trigg auditorium.

The majority of the awards are given to seniors graduating in the 2017 calendar year. The honors include the Umphrey Lee Award—given to a senior who has demonstrated incredible involvement in the SMU community and named for the first SMU student body president.

The Presidential Awards of Excellence are also presented at this banquet, recognizing volunteers, leaders and athletes who have also proven themselves to be exemplary academics in their undergraduate years at SMU. Faculty and staff are eligible for the Volunteer of the Year award, congratulating them on exceptional service outside of the SMU campus.

The most notable award, however, is the “M” Award. The highest recognition available to students, faculty, staff, or administrators, the “M” award honors a member of the community each year who has given to the university and their peers willingly and unselfishly during their time at the school, ultimately making both SMU and the world outside of campus a better place.

Last year’s student award recipients were: Carlton Adams, Max Agadoni, D’Marquis Allen, Jacob Conwaym, Tien Dang, Emily Dombrowski, Jamie Hinz, Justin Mueller, J. Barrett “JB” Stockslager and Charlie Weber.

Faculty honorees included: Charles Curran, Michael Hogan, Robert Krout, Stephen Rankin and Martha Starke.

Tickets are not required for this years event. Come out on April 17 at 7:30 p.m. to support notable members of the SMU community.