Mareyba earned her B.S. in psychology and history of science in 2020. As an undergraduate students at OU, her dedication to her studies and her community was clear through the numerous leadership roles she took on including the founding of the Minority Health Sciences Conference, empowering high school students interested in health sciences. She went on to pursue her master's in public health at Columbia University. There she directed the daily Columbia Dispatch Newsletter, served as president of Women for. Women and conducted groundbreaking research. Beyond her academic career, she has served as consultant for the United Nations and a Public Health Law Intern at the CDC. She has continued to show her dedication to healthcare in her role as Senior Consultant at Booz Hamilton in DC and now at Acumen LLC in San Francisco, as a Federal Healthcare Data and Policy Consultant.
David earned his B.A. in Mathematics from OU in 1962 and played a crucial role in coding lunar descent maneuvers for the Appollo missions. His leadership earned him the prestigious presidential Medal of Freedom. He and his wife, Judi, have continued to show their dedication to education, to our OU community and to our future through their generosity to the Department of Mathematics. Their gift to OU has led to the renaming of the department to the David and Judi Proctor Department of Mathematics and has also created endowments to bridge the funding gap for students receiving Oklahoma’s Promise tuition assistance.
Marilyn Ogilvie is a distinguished historian of science with a dedication to honoring the contributions of female scientists. Marilyn graduated from OU with her M.A. in Science in 1983 and her Ph.D. in History of Science in 1973. She served as a professor at Oklahoma Baptist University before returning to OU to serve as Curator of the History of Science Collections, where she expanded the collections and promoted the recognition of women’s roles in science. She has written multiple books in this area with her most recent work being about Marie Curie.
Mehdi earned his B.S. in laboratory technology and microbiology in 1976, his M.S. in environmental science and engineering and his Ph.D. in environmental health in 1981. He has made significant contributions to public and environmental health globally. He has served as a consultant for the U.S. Department of Justice, the National Institute of Corrections, United Nations and the World Health Organization. He has been a part of developing and implementing health safety programs, audits and training initiatives in the United States, Mexico and the Middle East. He established the Azimi-Young Endowed Scholarship for public health graduate education.
Leadership Scholars brings students together from a variety of backgrounds, academic disciplines, and experiences to expand their leadership education. The program is based on three pillars: leadership, service, and community. During bi-monthly meetings, students learn about important aspects of leadership from other leaders on campus and from each other. By learning and serving together, Leadership Scholars gain a stronger sense of their own leadership values and are better prepared to demonstrate leadership in the college and across campus.
In 2014, Cathryn and Jon Withrow endowed the Leadership Scholars program with a magnanimous give of one million dollars. The purpose of their endowment was to fund study abroad scholarships for 20 Leadership Scholars per year. Since their contribution, over 150 Withrow Leadership Scholars have had the honor of studying abroad in France. They return from this experience to serve the college and then the world as they graduate from the university.
In honor of the service of these outstanding young people and with profound gratitude to Cathryn and Jon Withrow for their transformational endowment, the Dodge Family College of Arts and Sciences awards the 2024 Distinguished Service Award to the Withrow Leadership Scholars and the Withrows on this 10th anniversary of their gift.
