Emma Locke, ODK Awards Presented To Graduating University Seniors

Two awards presented annually to University of Pittsburgh seniors were announced during Pitt’s annual Honors Convocation in February.

Pitt University Honors College senior Laura Dempsey was awarded the 2012 Emma Locke Award, which is presented annually to a graduating senior in recognition of high scholarship, character, and devotion to the ideals of the University. Established in 1946 by Charles A. Locke in memory of his mother, the Emma W. Locke Award is presented to a graduating senior with at least a 3.85 GPA who plans to continue his or her education after graduation.

Pitt seniors Kelvin Luu and Molly Stieber were named the 2012 Omicron Delta Kappa (ODK) Seniors of the Year. ODK, founded in 1914 at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Va., is an honorary society that recognizes students who maintain a high standard of leadership in collegiate activities. The award is given to students who possess and exhibit outstanding leadership qualities in service to the University.

Luu majored in bioengineering in Pitt’s Swanson School of Engineering and minored in chemistry in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences. A native of Garfield Heights, Ohio, Luu has been involved in numerous leadership positions at the University, including resident assistant and program coordinator for the Resident Student Association (RSA), where he worked with Honors freshmen as part of a Living Learning Community to develop a healthy residence-hall community. As a public relations chair in the RSA, Luu worked with other executive board members to improve life on campus for all resident students. He also served as a peer tutor to freshman engineering students in the Swanson School.

A member of the Student Alumni Association, Premedical Organization for Minority Students, and the Pittsburgh Outdoors Club, Luu also performed many community service projects, including cofounding the Holiday on the Hill donation drive for the American Red Cross in Pittsburgh and volunteering as a patient navigator at UPMC Shadyside Hospital and for Pitt’s annual Make a Difference Day.

Luu has participated in several research opportunities at Pitt, including the pursuit of research for the University’s Musculoskeletal Research Center and the Pittsburgh Tissue Engineering Initiative. A recipient of the University Honors College full-tuition scholarship and Swanson School of Engineering Scholarship, he is a member of the Golden Key International Honor Society, the National Society of Collegiate Scholars, and the Alpha Epsilon Delta fraternity. He also was on the Dean’s List each semester of his undergraduate career.