OSU-Tulsa student organizations celebrated in inaugural Student Life Excellence Awards

Thursday, May 9, 2024

Media Contact: Aaron Campbell | OSU-Tulsa Communications Coordinator | 918-594-8046 | aaron.ross.campbell@okstate.edu

Oklahoma State University-Tulsa student organizations were highlighted for their contributions to campus and community at the inaugural Student Life Excellence Awards Ceremony in April. The newly established awards celebrate the vibrancy and dedication of OSU-Tulsa student organizations in various areas.

Distinguished Student Organization of the Year

The Distinguished Student Organization of the Year Award is presented to an organization that has been registered for more than three semesters at OSU-Tulsa. This organization must show excellence in the areas of community engagement, collaboration, inclusiveness and leadership development.

The American Society of Mechanical Engineers earned the inaugural award in this category thanks to their consistent networking efforts, participation in engineering competitions and programs with local industry.

“ASME’s efforts are a win all around for OSU-Tulsa,” said JJ Smith, assistant director for OSU-Tulsa Student Affairs. “Not only do they provide connections with industry professionals for members to see what each industry does and what their careers might look like, but they’ve also brought employers to campus for things like career fairs and meetings in the Helmerich Research Center, just to be closer to our students.”

Emerging Leader

Public Health bachelor’s student Mia Feehan is the recipient of the inaugural Emerging Leader Award. This award is given to a student who has displayed great potential during their tenure at OSU-Tulsa, as evidenced in ways including but not limited to: leadership, involvement, work ethic, desire and ability to contribute positively to the campus.

Feehan has made a significant impact on OSU-Tulsa’s campus community that stands out above others thanks to her involvement, academic excellence and community support.

“Mia is just a go-getter,” Smith said. “She is somebody who stepped on campus and really wanted to find a way to get involved and make a difference. She sought every single opportunity she could to grow while she was here.”

Feehan, who graduates this semester, served as president of Health Promotion Club and was involved in multiple other student organizations including African American Student Association and President’s Leadership Society. She’s also the first OSU-Tulsa Honors program graduate, a 4.0 GPA student and a 2024 Outstanding Senior in the College of Education and Human Sciences.

“Mia is awesome – she’s going to do great things,” Smith said.

New Student Organization of the Year

The New Student Organization of the Year Award is presented to an organization that has been registered no more than three semesters at OSU-Tulsa. This organization must show potential in the areas of community engagement, collaboration, inclusiveness and leadership development.

OSU-Tulsa’s Management Information Systems Club earned this award after starting in the fall semester. The group has held consistent meetings, hosted game nights for its members and helped each other with homework and test preparation.

“Most organizations take a few semesters just to get membership and steady meetings, but they just took off right away,” Smith said. “It was impressive that they not only tackled the logistics of getting an organization started quickly, but they immediately started giving back to each other and being supportive in a major that can be difficult.”

Outstanding Community Engagement

The Outstanding Community Engagement Award is presented to an organization that demonstrates through action the importance of serving the campus, community, country and the world. 

The OSU-Tulsa Health Promotion Club earned this award thanks to their volunteer efforts with local food banks and reproductive health organizations.

“They really gave back to the community in a way that fit their health promotion mission,” Smith said. “Their efforts really reflected positively not only on the Health Promotion Club, but on all of OSU-Tulsa. They really stepped up and helped out local communities that need food and health resources.”

Program/Event of the Year

The Program/Event of the Year Award recognizes an outstanding effort by an organization to plan and implement a project that benefited the campus and/or community during this past year.

The inaugural award went to the African American Student Association (AASA) for their campuswide Game Night. AASA invited all OSU-Tulsa students to enjoy a night of free food, board games and fellowship on campus.

“What stood out to me was they didn’t just focus on themselves, they focused on trying to bring the entire student body together for a night of fun,” Smith said. “Campus Life puts on fun events, but it’s our job. But when students do it themselves, it can be much more special.”

Student Life Excellence Award recipients are selected by OSU-Tulsa Student Affairs each year, using annual reports that student organizations are asked to submit. For more information on the Student Life Excellence Awards, visit tulsa.okstate.edu/student-life/excellence-awards.