East Central University’s Loren Dunnam, is one of 11 inspirational college students from Oklahoma, to be named to the 2013 Newman Civic Fellows for service in their local communities.
The Newman Civic Fellows program was established by Campus Compact in honor of co-founder Frank Newman, who dedicated his life to creating opportunities for student civic learning and engagement.
The award is designed to recognize college students who have demonstrated an investment in finding solutions for challenges facing communities throughout the country through service, research and advocacy. Students are nominated by their college or university president.
Dunnam, a junior accounting major from Coalgate and an enrolled member of the Creek Nation, is deeply involved in improving the quality of life and standard of living for Native Americans. Dunnam’s efforts have resulted in the collection and delivery of clothing to the Pine Ridge and Crow Creek reservations of South Dakota. She also led efforts to deliver new toys and new clothing to the Kiowa Tribe of Oklahoma.
She organized a daylong street festival, called ‘Kids 4 Kids”, which showed children, particularly Native American Children, the opportunities that college offers and helped increase public awareness of poverty and the role education plays as a solution to poverty.
Dunnam served as a National Child Awareness Month Youth Ambassador in September in Washington D.C. for leadership training and a networking event on Capitol Hill. She was one of 51 youth ambassadors (one from each state and Washington D.C.) to be selected for that event.