Lexington, Va. (July 10, 2021) – Daniel Khoshkepazi, a native of Cherkassy, Ukraine, and a 2017 initiate of the SUNY Plattsburgh Circle of Omicron Delta Kappa, has been named the Society’s National Leader of the Year in Campus and Community Service. This award is one of the Society’s highest collegiate honors, and it comes with a $1,000 prize.
The announcement of the selection was made by Tara S. Singer, president and chief executive officer of O∆K. Singer said, “Daniel Khoshkepazi is an exceptional collegiate leader who has significantly benefitted both SUNY Plattsburgh, where he earned his undergraduate degree, and the University of Baltimore where he is currently enrolled. He is clearly devoted to improving both of the institutions he has attended and their surrounding communities.”
Khoshkepazi received his Bachelor of Arts with majors in political science and anthropology and minors in archaeology and gender and women’s studies from SUNY Plattsburgh in May 2019. He is currently a graduate student at the University of Baltimore pursuing a Master of Arts in global affairs and human security. He will graduate in May 2022.
In addition to being a member of Omicron Delta Kappa, Khoshkepazi is also a member of the Order of Omega, Pi Sigma Alpha, Iota Iota Iota, and Tau Kappa Epsilon Fraternity. While at SUNY Plattsburgh, he served as the vice president of student affairs and diversity for the school’s Student Association. Khoshkepazi was also a peer educator for a sexuality and relationship course. In addition, he was the founder and president of the Plattsburgh Political Union and the Red Cross Club.
At the University of Baltimore, Khoshkepazi has been recently re-elected for a second term as president of the Student Government Association. He has served as a community development fellow with Pigtown Main Street, completed a fellowship with the United Nations Association of the National Capital Area, is currently completing the Baltimore City Mayoral Fellowship and was recently named a Newman Civic Fellow.
About receiving the Omicron Delta Kappa award, Khoshkepazi said, “I am incredibly thankful for this award and feel nothing but gratitude to the greater society and both my circles where I have been involved. I would like to specially thank (from the University of Baltimore) Dr. Nusta Carranza Ko, Dean Roger Hartley, Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Anthony Butler, William Schnirel, President Kurt Schmoke, Nicole Morano, Kim Lane (from SUNY Plattsburgh), Dr. James Armstrong, Dr. Liou Xie, Dr. Daniel Lake, Dr. John McMahon, Dr. Richard Robbins, Dr. Amy Mountcastle, Dr. Vincent Carey, Dr. Susan Mody, Victoria Darling, my mom Victoria Zavalko and sister Valentina Khoshkepazi without whom, I would have never overcame my inner-saboteur, found my path as a first generation educated Iranian-Ukrainian Queer Asylee in a country I knew nothing about, and developed the passions and interests I have today.”
Omicron Delta Kappa Society, the National Leadership Honor Society, was founded in Lexington, Virginia, on December 3, 1914. A group of 15 students and faculty members established the Society to recognize and encourage leadership at the collegiate level. The founders established the O∆K Idea—the concept that individuals representing all phases of collegiate life should collaborate with faculty and others to support the campus and community. O∆K’s mission is to honor and develop leaders; encourage collaboration among students, faculty, staff, and alumni; and promote O∆K’s ideals of collaboration, inclusivity, integrity, scholarship, and service college and university campuses throughout North America. The Society’s national headquarters are located in Lexington, Virginia.
Contact
Tara S. Singer, president and chief executive officer, Omicron Delta Kappa, (540) 458-5340, tara@odk.org
