Our Team
Middle Tennessee State University
Tennessee State University
Click each university’s name to learn more about the Campus Teams.
Middle Tennessee State University
Campus Champion
Amy Sayward
Director, American Democracy Project
Amy Sayward
Director, American Democracy Project
Campus Champion
Monica Smith
Assistant to the President for Community Engagement
Monica Smith
Assistant to the President for Community Engagement
Monica Smith is a seasoned executive with nearly three decades of leadership experience spanning the higher education, corporate, and nonprofit sectors. She currently serves as the Assistant to the President for Community Engagement at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU), where she guides institutional strategy to strengthen outreach and build lasting community
partnerships.
Dr. Smith is the co-creator of the proprietary 3PO™ strategic planning process, a transformative framework she has successfully deployed across diverse organizations, including Honda of America, the National Conference for Community and Justice (formerly the National Conference of Christians and Jews), and Miami University.
A dedicated civic leader, Dr. Smith serves as a Diplomat for the Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce and holds board positions with both the Boys & Girls Clubs of Rutherford County and Main Street Murfreesboro. She is also
an NAACP Silver Life Member and a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.
Monica holds a Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) with double distinction in Higher Education Management from the University of Pennsylvania, alongside graduate and undergraduate degrees in Applied Behavioral Science and Psychology from Wright State University. Beyond her professional achievements, she is the proud mother of four successful adult children and the grandmother of two.
Ambassador
DeAsia Powell
DeAsia Powell
DeAsia Powell is a junior at Middle Tennessee State University majoring in Entertainment Journalism and minoring in Mass Communication. She is from Chattanooga, Tennessee and enjoys traveling, going to concerts, partaking in artistic activities and spending time with family and friends in her free time. Another fun fact about DeAsia is that she loves collecting magnets as souvenirs when traveling and she is interested in all things music and entertainment.
Ambassador
Marcus Rosario
Marcus Rosario
Marcus Rosario is a Social Justice Journalism major minoring in Social Justice. Marcus is an activist in civic engagement, specifically voter registration and voting, as part of the American Democracy Project. When it comes to why Marcus is interested in Social Justice, it is because of all the Anti-LGBTQIA legislation that has swept through America. As a gay person in America, these anti-LGBT laws affect him everyday and he wants to fight it.
Tennessee State University
Campus Champion
Cara Robinson