Five honored with Oakland University’s most prestigious student awards

Each year, Oakland University recognizes outstanding student leaders who demonstrate academic excellence while making a positive impact on campus and in the community.

OU’s Wilson Awards are presented annually to two graduating seniors who have maintained high academic standards, demonstrated extraordinary leadership capabilities and used their talents to serve others, both on campus and in surrounding communities.

The Human Relations Award is given annually to a graduating senior who has made outstanding contributions to intergroup understanding and conflict resolution in the OU community.

A committee reviews nominations from faculty, staff and students and selects recipients of the Wilson and Human Relations Awards. Recommended candidates are approved as honorees by the vice president for student affairs and the president.

The Don and Jan O’Dowd Graduate Award recognizes a graduate student who has made outstanding contributions through exemplary leadership and service at Oakland University and the surrounding community, exhibiting traits such as intellectual curiosity, enthusiasm, compassion, and dedication to their field of study.

OU’s Graduate Council reviews candidates for the Don and Jan O’Dowd Graduate Award and recommends the nominee for final approval to the executive vice president for academic affairs and provost.

Read on to learn about the 2026 honorees, who were formally recognized at the April 24 OU Board of Trustees meeting.

Alfred G. Wilson Award: Mathew Seidel

Mathew Seidel

As a liberal studies major and biology minor, Mathew Seidel compiled a strong academic record, maintaining a 4.0 grade point average while pursuing interests in scientific research, campus  leadership and volunteerism.

He served as a research assistant in the Eye Research Institute, participating in the Summer Undergraduate Program in Eye Research and contributing to peer-reviewed scientific manuscripts, including first-author work under review. He presented his research at local, national, and international conferences and earned a Provost Undergraduate Student Research Award.

Seidel demonstrated distinguished campus leadership by serving as the student liaison to the Oakland University Board of Trustees, founding and leading the Michigan Coalition for Human Rights Oakland University Chapter and serving as chair of the Student Life Lecture Board. In the latter role, he successfully planned and executed a large-scale campus lecture on tuberculosis and the importance of public health policy, drawing over 1,000 attendees.

In addition, Seidel served as Student Representative on OU’s University Senate, leading an initiative to align degree pathways with affordability and student success, and also founded the Provost’s Student Advisory Council, giving students a more prominent voice in institutional decision-making. He helped advance education, advocacy and community engagement through campus and community-based initiatives, including volunteering to support the unhoused for nearly a decade.

Matilda R. Wilson Award: Delaney Lohr

Delaney Lohr

Delaney Lohr has been recognized on the Dean’s List, demonstrating strong academic achievement within the rigorous Direct-Admit Bachelor of Science in Nursing program.

She has shown exemplary leadership across campus, serving as the Community Service Representative on the Executive Board of the Student Nurses Association of Oakland University, leading multiple large-scale service initiatives and contributing to university-wide wellness programming through the Healthy Campus Initiative.

With a strong commitment to service and responsible citizenship, Lohr has organized and participated in numerous community outreach efforts, including food drives, school supply drives, clothing drives and support initiatives for underserved populations in the Pontiac community. She has also volunteered with local organizations and developed community-based health education initiatives.

Human Relations Award: Lance Markowitz

Lance Markowitz

While pursuing a dual degree in general management and Spanish, Lance Markowitz demonstrated academic excellence by maintaining a 3.72 grade point average and earning recognition on OU’s President's List and Dean's List. He also engaged in applied academic experiences, including the Marine Energy Collegiate Competition, where he served in leadership roles and led his team to national recognition.

Markowitz made a positive impact on campus by serving as a legislator and leader within Oakland University Student Congress, founding the Student Engagement Task Force, serving as a student representative to the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning and playing a key role in advancing student engagement initiatives within the University's 2030 Strategic Plan.

With an inclusive, forward-thinking mindset, Markowitz contributed his time and leadership to initiatives supporting student success, mentoring peers, organizing campus-wide engagement events and fostering collaboration between students, faculty and the broader university community.

Don and Jan O’Dowd Graduate Award: Red Douglas and Charles Shamoun

Red Douglas

Red Douglas, a student in OU’s doctoral program in educational leadership, within the School of Education and Human Services, has demonstrated academic excellence and a profound commitment to student success.

Douglas maintained a 4.0 GPA while focusing his research on supporting students navigating traumatic life events, specifically bereavement in higher education. They have demonstrated extraordinary compassion by founding Grizzlies Together in Grief (G2G), a peer support organization created to address the needs of grieving students, effectively bridging the gap between scholarly research and real-world service.

Douglas has shown exceptional leadership at Oakland University, serving in critical roles including Student Liaison to the Board of Trustees, member of the Strategic Planning Leadership Team, and co-founder of the Association for Graduate and Professional Students.

In addition, Douglas has dedicated nearly a decade of service to the Oakland University Writing Center, providing more than 5,000 hours of mentorship and support to students, faculty, and staff, and successfully guiding numerous mentees toward their own graduate and doctoral pursuits.

Douglas extended his impact into the broader community as a fourth-generation resident of Auburn Hills, serving as an election inspector and precinct co-chair and as a member of the city’s historical society, while also holding international leadership roles in death education and bereavement advocacy.

Douglas exemplifies the spirit of the Don and Jan O’Dowd Graduate Award through his intellectual curiosity, empathetic leadership and tireless dedication to improving institutional systems for the benefit of all students.

Charles Shamoun

Charles Shamoun is a recent graduate of the Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing program within Oakland University’s School of Nursing. He earned both his undergraduate and doctoral degrees from OU, graduating Magna Cum Laude as a member of the Honors College.

Dr. Shamoun has demonstrated academic excellence and a mission-driven commitment to advancing caregiving science, with a particular focus on the prevalence and impact of health-related social needs among caregivers of stroke survivors. His scholarly work includes multiple peer-reviewed publications and over a dozen presentations at national and international conferences. He will continue to build on his work from OU as a T32 postdoctoral fellow within the Steven S. Elbaum Family Center for Caregiving at Mount Sinai Health System in New York. 

In addition to his scholarly contributions, Dr. Shamoun is developing NeuroReach, an initiative aimed at connecting neuroscience researchers, patients and families, and community organizations to increase research accessibility and engagement. He also fostered doctoral student connectedness by creating a social media initiative for Ph.D. nursing students in the online program to facilitate peer support, knowledge-sharing, and community-building.

Dr. Shamoun has extended his impact beyond campus through community engagement across Southeast Michigan, delivering educational sessions to stroke survivors and their caregivers and providing free blood pressure screenings. He has also demonstrated a strong commitment to teaching as clinical faculty at OU, earning 100% effectiveness ratings while supervising undergraduate nursing students in acute care settings, and serving as a preceptor and mentor in level-one trauma centers.

Dr. Shamoun exemplifies the spirit of the Don and Jan O’Dowd Graduate Award through his intellectual curiosity, leadership, and dedication to nursing science. His work at Oakland University and his ongoing commitment to improving the lives of caregivers through rigorous, compassionate inquiry reflect a sustained impact on both the profession and the community.

Learn more about the O’Dowd Graduate Award and Wilson and Human Relation Awards.