GREENEVILLE – Lily Burgner is setting an impressive pace with her academic studies.
Lily Burgner, right, shakes hands with Dr. Scott Hummel at her Tusculum graduation.
A senior at Chuckey-Doak High School who will not graduate until May, Burgner has already earned a degree from Tusculum University. She graduated Saturday, Dec. 13, from Tusculum with an Associate of Arts in general studies as a dual enrollment student.
“I wasn’t going to pursue an associate degree at first, and then I was about a half a semester in and I decided I might as well go ahead and obtain it,” Burgner said. “I thought it would be pretty cool. I could get a jump on things. If I can and I have the opportunity, I might as well take it.”
Burgner recognized that not a lot of people have the opportunity to accomplish what she did. As a first-generation student, meaning her parents do not have a bachelor’s degree, she felt she had something to prove.
She took some of her Tusculum classes online but took many of them in person. She has really enjoyed attending a college of Tusculum’s size because she is able to interact with her professors one-on-one. Burgner said faculty members who have meant a great deal to her are Dr. Peter Noll, professor of public history and museum studies; Dr. Chuck Pearson, assistant dean of math and science; and Dr. David Smith, executive director of TRIO programs, who periodically teaches a class.
“They have genuinely changed my life and helped me grow as a person, not just academically but also socially,” she said.
The associate degree will not mark the end of her studies at Tusculum. Burgner will now turn to earning her bachelor’s degree in mathematics. She really enjoys mathematics and has learned about many careers that are available for students with a degree in that subject.
During her studies so far at Tusculum, Burgner has been actively involved on campus. She was part of a group of students in 2025 who gave one of the presentations during the Academic Symposium. Then, she served as assistant poetry editor of this year’s volume of “The Tusculum Review,” the university’s international literary journal. She was thrilled to be a staff member and said it was special to work with the authors who write for the publication.
Lily Burgner speaks at the launch of “The Tusculum Review” in November.
The assistant editors, who are Tusculum students, read submissions from authors who wanted to appear in “The Tusculum Review,” perform the layout of the ones being published and correspond with the authors. Burgner recognized the importance of the work that would be in “The Tusculum Review” and her responsibility to help ensure the work was good, right and looked nice. It helped push her to realize she was entering adulthood.
Burgner was one of the students at the launch of “The Tusculum Review” in November who discussed their interviews with the authors and artists in the publication. She also wrote one of the profiles of those writers and artists.
Kelsey Trom, editor of “The Tusculum Review” and professor of English at Tusculum, praised Burgner for her work.
“Lily was central to all the work we did to bring the journal to readers this fall: templating all the poems in Adobe, corresponding with the poets, keeping me organized, hosting and introducing authors at our events, coordinating student editor wardrobes for the launch and marshaling our biggest mailing ever,” Trom said. “Lily is already a good collaborator and editor. As a writer, Lily is ambitious and prolific. As a literature student, she says the kinds of thoughtful things about assigned texts that make you certain Gen Z will be OK.”
Burgner seamlessly fits into the collegiate space while she is still in high school.
“Some people are scared to go into college, but in my experience, it is one of the simplest transitions you can make,” she said. “It’s a lot less overbearing and overwhelming, and you have a little more freedom. And Tusculum being small definitely helped with that because you get to know your professors. You don’t walk into a lecture hall with 100 people. You sit there and make eye contact with them, and they ask what you did over fall break.”
Lily Burgner, third from the left in the front row, poses with fellow Tusculum students, a professional artist and a professor at the launch of “The Tusculum Review” in November.
Dr. Heather Henson-Ramsey, assistant vice president of academic affairs, said Burgner’s achievements have been noteworthy.
“We love offering the dual enrollment program because it gives students a chance to complete their academic studies quicker while still studying with expert professors who are focused on mentoring them and giving them individualized attention,” Dr. Henson-Ramsey said. “It is particularly enjoyable to see students such as Lily embrace the collegiate environment and make the most of their time by being highly engaged. We commend Lily for using her time at Tusculum effectively and look forward to seeing additional accomplishments from her as she finishes her bachelor’s degree.”
To apply for the dual enrollment program, please visit https://site.tusculum.edu/apply-visit/apply/. Interested individuals can also contact Tusculum’s Office of Admission at admission@tusculum.edu to learn more and discuss options. Additional information about the university is available at www.tusculum.edu.