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Omicron Delta Kappa Inducts Mississippi College Student Leaders


Founded nearly a century ago in Lexington, Virginia, Omicron Delta Kappa is a growing leadership honor society on hundreds of colleges nationwide.

Mississippi College’s chapter is a strong one with nearly 40 new inductees on the Clinton campus this fall. Earlier this month, the Christian university’s ODK group inducted its new officers and members during ceremonies at Anderson Hall.

The officers include: president Zach Schurch, a biology/medical science major from Starkville, Ashley Howard, the ODK service chair from Madison, and secretary Briana Pearson, an elementary education major from Brandon. Scott Lee serves as the new vice president and will take over as president next year.

“Being elected president of ODK meant a lot to me and I’m thankful that my classmates gave me such a great honor,” Schurch said. “It’s given me an opportunity to learn about leading an organization and this will help me with my future in dental school and eventually as a dentist.”

Schurch, 22, is a Starkville High graduate and the MC senior is involved with the Shawreth Order of Mississippi College. He studied abroad at the Christian university’s London Semester program.

Launched in 1914 at Washington & Lee University, ODK’s distinguished alumni include Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning of the University of Tennessee, Chick-fil-A President S. Truett Cathy of Georgia State University, and FedEX CEO Fred Smith of Rhodes College in Memphis. For its first 60 years, the group only inducted men, and added women in 1974.

An English professor and director of Mississippi College’s Writing Center, Steven Price is the faculty advisor of the campus chapter of ODK.