OFE News Release
Les Risser Receives Distinguished Service Award From Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence
September 9, 2009
OKLAHOMA CITY -- Norman community leader Les Risser has been named the recipient of the 2009 Distinguished Service Award from the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence, a nonprofit organization that recognizes and encourages academic excellence in Oklahoma’s public schools.
Risser was recognized at the foundation’s recent annual meeting in Oklahoma City. She was honored for her commitment to public education and for her many contributions to the foundation. In 2004, Risser joined the foundation’s board of trustees and quickly became one of its most active board members, serving on the executive committee and serving twice as chairwoman of the Academic Awards Banquet.
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| Les Risser of Norman accepts the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence 2009 Distinguished Service Award from foundation founder and chairman David L. Boren during the foundation’s recent Board of Trustees meeting in Oklahoma City. |
The flagship event of the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence, the Academic Awards Banquet is attended by nearly 1,000 Oklahomans and broadcast statewide on public television. The banquet location alternates annually between Tulsa and the Oklahoma City metro area. Under Risser’s leadership in 2009, the Oklahoma City-area event was smoothly relocated to a new venue. Through its Academic Awards Program, the foundation has provided more than $3.6 million in scholarships and cash awards since 1987 to honor outstanding high school seniors as Academic All-Staters and exceptional educators as Medal for Excellence winners.
“Les Risser has been a valuable asset to the foundation’s Board of Trustees,” said Emily Stratton, executive director of the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence. “Her graciousness, team spirit and leadership skills strongly contributed to the success of the Academic Awards Banquets in 2007 and 2009.”
Currently, Risser serves as a development director at the University of Oklahoma, where she helps oversee the “Women in Philanthropy” initiative. She also has served as director of Academic Outreach at OU, where she coordinated guest speakers and enriching learning experiences for students in OU’s residence halls and Greek housing.
Risser is a board member of the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History and is active in the DREAM Institute, an organization dedicated to enriching higher educational experiences for students with disabilities.