Stanley earns highest honor
Friday, June 24, 2022
Media Contact: Kaylie Wehr | Coordinator, Marketing and Public Relations | 405-744-6740 | kaylie.wehr@okstate.edu
Dr. Morgan Stanley was stunned when she learned she was named the 2022 Dean Clarence H. McElroy award recipient.
Selected by the graduating class and fourth-year instructors, the award is the highest honor an Oklahoma State University College of Veterinary Medicine student can achieve.
“I was completely shocked,” Stanley said. “At that exact moment, I was actually looking around the room trying to guess who it was going to be. I was overwhelmed and I kind of froze. My mother, who came to the ceremony with me, had to give me a little nudge to snap me out of it.
“It’s an incredible honor. I want to rise to the challenge of the winners before me and that just increases my passion and motivation to do the best that I can.”
A love of animals and an interest in medicine led her to pursue a DVM degree.
“I’ve always had a love for animals and my parents are in human medicine,” Stanley
said. “Those two concepts kind of melded together and led me to want to become a veterinarian.
My parents encouraged me to explore medicine but didn’t pressure me to do the human
side of it. They let me follow my specific passion and I’m forever grateful for that.”
As she moves on to the next chapter, Stanley will leave with fond memories of OSU.
“I’m definitely going to miss the people you get to be around — the classmates and the faculty and staff,” she said. “As for a specific memory, I can’t think of just one. There have been too many amazing clients and amazing things to see and learn.”
As she reflects on her four years of veterinary education, Stanley had some advice for those who may be interested in pursuing a degree in veterinary medicine.
“I would say that it’s not a decision to make lightly,” Stanley said. “I feel like
there are challenges that people need to be aware of just so
it’s an informed decision, but if it’s what you want to do, don’t let anything stop
you. It is truly, in my opinion, the best career field in the world and I wouldn’t
trade it for anything.”
In addition to the Dean McElroy Award, Stanley also received the Butch and Luella
Ruth Curtis Scholarship, and the Judy M. Averill and Dr.
Collette Crotty Endowed Scholarship.
Following graduation, Stanley plans to continue her veterinary education as a lifelong learner.
“I am wanting to see what more I can learn and get exposure to, maybe through an internship,” she said. “Whatever I end up doing in the future, I know that I want surgery to be a big part of it. I just want to say again that I am very, very honored to receive this award. It means so much to me and I will be forever grateful, and Oklahoma State will forever hold a special place in my heart.”
Story By: Kaylie Wehr | Vet Cetera
Photo By: Phil Shockley