Omicron Delta Kappa Honor Society Inducts New Members

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 8, 2022) — The University of Kentucky Nu Circle of national leadership honor society Omicron Delta Kappa inducted 53 new members at a virtual ceremony on Jan. 30, including nine from the College of Arts & Sciences. ODK recognizes superior leadership and exemplary character and encourages collaboration among members across the five phases celebrated by the society: scholarship, athletics, service, communications and arts.

The 2021-2022 inductees from A&S are Clair Ashley, Rachael Blandau, Gustavo De Aguiar Martins, Meghan Goins, Moses Ogbaje, Anna Puderbaugh, Nicholas Relich, Seth Ricketts and Stephen Turner.

The circle was established on May 2, 1925, and celebrates leaders across campus by co-hosting the Alumni Association Outstanding Teacher Award and other honors like the Maurice A. Clay Outstanding Graduating Senior Award. In June, UK will host the organization’s National Leadership Conference.
 
“These inductees join the long and distinguished tradition of ODK Nu Circle members extending leadership and service toour campus and community," said Robert Vaughan, a senior history major and ODK member. Vaughan is also the chair of the technology planning committee for the ODK National Leadership Conference. "Hosting the NLC gives us an opportunity to showcase ODK's significant and lasting campus contributions here, to over 200 Conference attendees visiting UK from around the nation."
 
The venue for NLC activities is the Gatton Student Center, he said. The facility's roots go back to 1931, when student leaders of ODK perceived the need for an on-campus student center. They established seed funds for its construction and challenged UK's Board of Trustees to undertake the project
 
"That's a pretty special history, and we're proud of our connection to such an incredible facility and essential hub of student life on our campus, where lifetime bonds of friendship and partnerships of service are created,” he said. 

Omicron Delta Kappa is supported by the Chellgren Center for Undergraduate Excellence within the Office of the Provost. For more information on membership, contact chellgrencenter@uky.edu

The University of Kentucky is increasingly the first choice for students, faculty and staff to pursue their passions and their professional goals. In the last two years, Forbes has named UK among the best employers for diversity, and INSIGHT into Diversity recognized us as a Diversity Champion four years running. UK is ranked among the top 30 campuses in the nation for LGBTQ* inclusion and safety. UK has been judged a “Great College to Work for" three years in a row, and UK is among only 22 universities in the country on Forbes' list of "America's Best Employers."  We are ranked among the top 10 percent of public institutions for research expenditures — a tangible symbol of our breadth and depth as a university focused on discovery that changes lives and communities. And our patients know and appreciate the fact that UK HealthCare has been named the state’s top hospital for five straight years. Accolades and honors are great. But they are more important for what they represent: the idea that creating a community of belonging and commitment to excellence is how we honor our mission to be not simply the University of Kentucky, but the University for Kentucky.