Ò°ÀÇÉçÇø University alumna Laura Jardine was awarded an $8,500 fellowship from the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, the nation’s oldest and most selective collegiate honor society for all academic disciplines.
Jardine graduated from OCU in 2018 with a bachelor’s degree in biology, minoring in chemistry and environmental studies. She has been working at the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality since 2018 and plans to attend the University of Minnesota this fall to pursue a law degree.
Jardine received the Slater Fellow award, which is named for an emeritus professor of biology at University of Puget Sound who in 1985 became the first member of the society to endow a fellowship in a donor's own name. Preference is given to the top scorer whose undergraduate field is in the biological sciences.
The selection process for the fellowship is based on applicants' evidence of graduate potential, undergraduate academic achievement, service and leadership experience, letters of recommendation, personal statements of educational perspective and career goals, and acceptance at an approved graduate or professional program.
Jardine is among 62 students nationwide to receive a Phi Kappa Phi fellowship this year. Since its creation in 1932, the fellowship program has become one of the society's most visible and well-funded endeavors, supporting students for first-year graduate or professional study. In addition to the fellowships, Phi Kappa Phi’s award programs give nearly $1 million each year to qualifying students and members through undergraduate study abroad grants, grants for literacy initiatives, and member and chapter awards. To learn more about these programs, visit .