Tennessee Intercollegiate State Legislature (TISL)
This is a forum for the top echelon of the state's campus leaders to exchange ideas, express their opinions, and learn how government works. Each year, SGA sends a delegation of 28 students to the General Assembly in November to represent the University of Memphis. Students selected will participate in one of the 4 programs: legislative (House and Senate), lobbying, AMC3, or media. For more information, please contact one of our delegation's executive officers, visit our Instagram page @uofm_tisl, or visit www.tislonline.org.
Executive Council
Abdul Alashmali, Chief Executive Officer/Head Delegate - nlshmli1@memphis.edu
Blake Dexter, Legislative Coordinator
Stephanie Monisit, Communications Director
Madison Hayslett, AMC3 Coordinator
Awards from the 56th General Assembly
Carlisle Award – The Carlisle award is TISL’s oldest and most prestigious award and recognizes 10 outstanding legislators. This award was presented to Joshua Blackwell.
Best Lobbyist Award – This award recognizes the outstanding lobbyist based on her effectiveness in achieving her goals in an ethical manner. Alivia Blisset earned Best Lobbyist for the Education Firm.
Best AMC3 Brief – This award recognizes the best written appellate brief submitted in the AMC3 competition. Madison Hayslett, Annorah Flannigalan, Maia Cook, and Layah Rasul earned Best AMC3 Brief.
Priority Legislation – At the end of each year’s General Assembly, the Executive Council of TISL meets to select priority legislation from among the bills passed by the General Assembly. Blake Dexter’s bill, “TISL Bill 94: AN ACT TO REMOVE TCA 2-8-117 TO ALLOW RANKED CHOICE VOTING AND RUNOFF VOTING,” was passed by the General Assembly, signed by the TISL Governor, and selected as priority legislation.
Lieutenant Governor – Anthony Griffen was elected Lieutenant Governor, serving as the Speaker of the Senate and presiding over Senate proceedings during the General Assembly.
Chief Clerk of the House – Sumiran Sharma was appointed Chief Clerk of the House, supporting the operations and proceedings of the TISL House of Representatives.
Deputy Chief Clerk of the Senate – Joshua Blackwell was appointed Deputy Chief Clerk of the Senate, supporting the operations and proceedings of the TISL Senate.
Past Awards
Best Delegation - At the close of TISL each year, the Executive Council meets to evaluate each delegation on its ability to bring and present quality legislation, to debate actively in sessions of the General Assembly, and its overall participation in the General Assembly. As decided by the Executive Council, the delegation that outshines all others is selected as the Best Delegation. The Best Delegation of the 48th General Assembly was awarded to the University of Memphis.
Carlisle Award - The Carlisle award is TISL's oldest and most prestigious award and recognizes 10 outstanding legislators. This award was presented to Matthew Mullins.
Best Senator Award - This award is granted on basisthe basis of possessing great skill in debate, having knowledge of parliamentary procedureprocedures, being effective in session, and on the quality of legislation sponsored. This award was presented to Brock Rowell.
Best Lobbyist Award - This award recognizes the outstanding lobbyist on their effectiveness to achieve goals in an ethical manner. This award was presented to Maya McBride.
Best Media Team - This award recognizes the best media team, whose hard work and dedication exemplify the tenets of political journalism. This award was presented to John Klyce and Peyton Pilgrim.
Priority Legislation - At the end of the year's General Assembly, the Executive Council of TISL meets to select priority legislation from among those bills passed by the General Assembly. At the 48th General Assembly, TISL Bill 7, AN ACT TO REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF OPIOID PRESCRIPTIONS AND TO IMPLEMENT A TAX ON ALL OPIOID PRESCRIPTIONS, was selected for priority legislation. The sponsors for this bill were Matthew Mullins, Kevin CarpenterCarpenter, and Brock Rowell. After receiving this designation, the sponsors of this bill successfully lobbied state legislators in order to put an end to the opioid epidemic in Tennessee.
Past TISL Governors from Memphis
Academic Year General Assembly Governor
1971-72 6th Frank Clement Jr.
1976-77 13th David Lillard Jr.
1978-79 15th Douglas Littlejohn
1987-88 N/A Alan Crone
1990-91 N/A Kevin O’Connor
1993-94 27th Tre Hargett
1995-96 29th Russell A. Humphrey
1997-98 31st Jeffrey F. Wisdom
1999-20 33rd Emily Cline (Bronze)
2002-03 35th Elizabeth Shelly
2008-09 39th Kenneth Taylor
2010-11 41st Gian Gozum
2011-12 42nd Cory Higdon
2022-23 54th Paige Foster
Notable TISL Alumni from Memphis
Chief Clerk of the Tennessee Senate, Russell Humphrey
Current Tennessee Secretary of State, Tre Hargett
Current Tennessee State Treasurer, David Lillard
Former Tennessee House of Representative, Carol Chumney
For Questions about TISL, contact sga@memphis.edu.