NORMAN – The University of Oklahoma is being awarded the prestigious Davis Cup for the third consecutive year in recognition of its record-setting enrollment of United World College international freshmen. OU is the only public university in the nation to ever be awarded the Davis Cup.
"Congratulations to the University of Oklahoma for winning the 'Davis Cup' for the third straight year in a row,” said Philanthropist Shelby M.C. Davis. “We are pleased to recognize the university for matriculating more Davis UWC Scholars into its new entering class than any of the other 90 colleges and universities in our program. This is unprecedented and obviously a reflection of the university's deep commitment to build a global community at Oklahoma. We are proud to have Oklahoma as a partner school in the Davis UWC Scholars Program, and we send our warmest greetings to all our scholars there."
“The Davis Scholars make a significant impact on the quality of the University of Oklahoma,” said OU President David L. Boren. “They broaden the perspectives of all of our students on world issues. Many Davis Scholars will go home to become important leaders in their own countries and will take with them the lifelong friendship with OU students. The university salutes Shelby Davis for his generosity and insight.”
OU is one of 91 Davis Program partner colleges and universities in the United States, including Yale; Princeton; Brown; the universities of North Carolina, Virginia and Michigan; Duke; Columbia; and MIT. OU has 165 Davis UWC Scholars currently enrolled representing 60 countries and all 12 of the United World College campuses worldwide where graduates have been produced.
United World Colleges are two-year residential schools in which a rigorous International Baccalaureate curriculum is employed with all-English instruction. A diverse international student population exists at each of the now 15 UWCs worldwide: no more than 25 percent of the students at each school can be from the country where the school is located. Students are selected by national committees to attend their United World College, where they finish their last two years of secondary education.
United World College was founded in 1962 with the vision of bringing together young people whose experience was of the political conflict of the cold war era, offering an educational experience based on shared learning, collaboration and understanding so that the students would act as champions of peace.
Davis UWC Scholars tend not only to be outstanding students, but exceptional members of the university community as well. Since 2008, when OU enrolled its first UWC scholars, these students have achieved recognition at OU as Outstanding Seniors and have served in a variety of leadership roles, including as Center for the Creation of Economic Wealth team leaders, International Advisory Committee executive officers and resident advisers.
