OU College of Allied Health Student Receives National Allied Health Professions Education Award

OU College of Allied Health nutritional sciences doctoral student Bethany Williams recently received the Association of Schools Advancing Health Professions (ASAHP) Thomas Elwood Scholar award.

The Thomas Elwood Scholar Award is part of the ASAHP's Scholarship of Excellence program. Each year, one nomination is solicited from each member college to compete for the ASAHP Scholarship of Excellence Award, and eight to 12 are awarded each year. In addition to being awarded an ASAHP Scholarship of Excellence, Williams was selected for the Thomas Elwood Scholar award, given to the most outstanding student among the scholarship winners.

Williams' focus of study is in behavioral health, specifically the nutrition- and activity-related childcare environments for underserved populations.

"My primary research goals are to describe and identify helpful community resources for underserved populations, as a lack of health-related access can sabotage outcomes for young children and their families," Williams said. "This exciting work will inform program and community interventions to aid teachers serving in low-access neighborhoods, thereby enhancing nutrition education for high-risk children."

As part of the award, Williams received $2,000 and the opportunity to attend the 2019 ASAHP Summit in Charleston, South Carolina, where she was formally honored.

Two other OU College of Allied Health students, Catherine Grantham and Victoria Showalter, were mentioned at the summit for being inducted into Alpha Eta, the national honor society of allied health professions whose members represent the top 10% of graduates of allied health schools and colleges.