The Distinguished Leadership Award

The Distinguished Leadership Award recognizes a Leadership Oklahoma City graduate who has outstanding community service, not limited to work for a single agency.

The Alumni Board has the annual honor of being able to nominate an LOKC (dues paying) graduate for the Distinguished Leadership Award (DLA). The DLA is recognized at the Graduation and Awards Luncheon in May and is presented a trophy and a cash award of $2500 (to be donated to a nonprofit of their choice).

The DLA is designed to recognize exceptional community leadership program graduates. Recipients are men and women who have made significant and notable contributions for the betterment of their communities. Graduates of leadership programs who exemplify the spirit and goals for civic involvement and trusteeship are eligible.

This award is different from the LOKC’s Paragon Award in that it allows a graduate’s body of work for more than just one community agency to be recognized.

Criteria for Judging

The following guidelines will be used by the committee in selecting this year’s recipient. Please refer to them as you prepare your statement:

  • Breadth - extent of leadership throughout the community, length involved, areas touched, span of participation

  • Depth - intensity in project(s), strength of leadership, position(s) in organization(s)

  • Staying power - longevity in organization(s)

  • Best in humanity (nobleness) - compassion for service

  • Service should be more than just a paid position