Vincent Chance Windham, 26, is the 2015 recipient of Valdosta State University’s Annie Powe Hopper Award.

The Annie Powe Hopper Award is presented annually to a senior who represents the high academic standards and exemplifies the traditions of Valdosta State University. It was first presented on May 2, 1962, and has since come to be recognized as the university’s most prestigious award.

Windham, who anticipates completing a Master of Accountancy in December, described the Annie Powe Hopper Award as “my crowning achievement while attending VSU.”

“It is truly an honor to be so highly thought of by the faculty at VSU,” said the son of Vince and Tammy Windham. “This award is one that I will cherish forever. This award solidifies that hard work and dedication absolutely pay off.”

A native of Jennings, Fla., Windham is vice president of the Mu Zeta Chapter of Beta Alpha Psi, co-director of the Case Competition for the Institute of Management Accountants, and a member of the Business Student Advisory Council, Beta Gamma Sigma, Phi Kappa Phi, and Sigma Alpha Pi (National Society of Leadership and Success). He earns a spot on the Dean’s List every semester and is a recipient of the Beth Burnette Finance Scholarship and the Department of Accounting’s Master of Accountancy Scholarship.

The Harley Langdale Jr. College of Business Administration selected Windham for its 2015 Outstanding Senior Award.

Windham plans to work as an auditor for PricewaterhouseCoopers, or PwC, in Jacksonville, Fla., after graduating with his master’s degree. He took the audit section of the certified public accountant exam in May and passed with a score of 96.

Windham holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in accounting from VSU, which he earned in 2014, and an Associate of Arts from North Florida Community College, which he earned in 2010.

VSU’s Annie Powe Hopper Award is named in honor of the institution’s first dean of women, who arrived at what was then known as South Georgia State Normal College in 1920. Her first position was that of a teacher.