Published on November 17, 2014 by Cassady Weldon  
Mann Award winners 2014

Eleven Samford University students have received Frances Marlin Mann Awards for Leadership and Character. The awards were presented at a Nov. 6 ceremony.

The Mann Awards are presented each year by Samford’s Frances Marlin Mann Center for Ethics and Leadership to honor students who display exemplary leadership and strong character. Student recipients were chosen from each of the university’s 10 academic schools and athletics program, with one student chosen to receive the Joe McDade Scholarship.

Recipients were nominated by deans and other university administrators. Honorees are selected for their consistent leadership and strong character, based on attributes such as humility, courage, self-control and justice.

The 2014 Mann Award recipients are:

  • School of the Arts -- J.D. Myers, junior musical theatre major from Elyria, Ohio
  • Howard College of Arts and Sciences -- Kendall McPheeters, senior biology major from Owens Cross Roads, Alabama
  • Athletics -- Michaela Reesor, senior journalism and mass communication major from Caledon, Ontario
  • Brock School of Business -- Selina Schirmer, senior Brock Scholar from Pittsford, New York
  • Beeson Divinity School -- Bradley Patton, master of divinity student from Alabaster, Alabama
  • Orlean Bullard Beeson School of Education -- Nicole Smith, senior education major from Marietta, Georgia
  • School of Health Professions -- David Wilhoite, senior sports medicine major from Knoxville, Tennessee
  • Cumberland School of Law -- Justin Mitchell, 3rd-year student from Copperas Cove, Texas
  • McWhorter School of Pharmacy -- Adrienne Darby, 4th-year student from Montgomery, Alabama
  • Ida V. Moffett School of Nursing -- Brian Dickson, nurse educator graduate student from Jasper, Alabama
  • School of Public Health -- Charita Lewis, senior nutrition and dietetics major from Dothan, Alabama

Reesor, a member of Samford’s volleyball team, also received the Joe McDade Scholarship.

The McDade Scholarship honors a 1961 alumnus. Nominees must demonstrate a life and character lived in the spirit of Christ, a contribution to the overall betterment and well-being of the University, participation in a wide range of campus life, leadership ability, an embodiment of the overall goals, mission, and spirit of the university, and a commitment to the long-range development and well-being of the university.

Cassady Weldon is a journalism and mass communication major and news and feature writer in the Office of Marketing and Communication.

 
Samford is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, Samford is the 87th-oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. Samford enrolls 5,791 students from 49 states, Puerto Rico and 16 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Samford fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference and ranks 6th nationally for its Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.