Indiana University Southeast will award its 1997 Chancellor's Medallion to Indiana Gov. Frank O'Bannon at a presentation dinner on the campus Friday, March 7.
Announcement of the award was made by Southeast Chancellor F.C. Richardson and Charlie Jenkins, dinner chairman and president of WXVW (Jeffersonville) and WAVG (Louisville) radio. The event is sponsored by the IU Southeast Board of Advisors and benefits the campus' student scholarship fund.
The new governor, who has been a member of the Southeast Board of Advisors since 1983, is the tenth person to receive the honor.
"Gov. Frank O'Bannon is an ideal recipient," said Richardson. "His many years of distinguished service and accomplishments as state senator and lieutenant governor provided a model of how public officials can enrich the lives of families; educate children and adults in schools and colleges; and provide the support needed by business and industry to fuel the engines of economic development.
"He has demonstrated to Indiana and the world that men of good character can make tough business decisions that are still humane for those who need support and protection."
Richardson noted that student financial assistance through scholarships, grants, loans and part-time campus employment is a major priority at the campus. More than half of IUS students receive financial assistance, and more than 80 percent are employed in full-time or part-time jobs.
Past recipients include Dr. Joseph Black, who served as an IU Trustee and on the IUS Board of Advisors for more than 20 years.
IUS Communications Director Jim Stammerman said that the O'Bannon ties to the Southeast campus extend back to the governor's father, Robert O'Bannon, who was a state senator. Robert O'Bannon "was a big supporter of the campus when he was a leader in the state Senate in the late 1960s," Stammerman said. "He helped to secure funding for the new Grant Line Road campus when he served as chair of the Senate Finance Committee."
The dinner will be at 7:30 p.m. in the University Center, preceded by a reception at the Paul W. Ogle Cultural and Community Center (see Home Pages' Links, Feb. 7).
Tickets for the scholarship fund-raiser are $100 and are now on sale through Southeast's Community Relations Office (812-941-2415).
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