Jon Ellison has been inducted into Phi Society, Mortar Board, and Phi Beta Kappa and served as president of Alpha Epsilon Delta, pre-medical honorary. He was winner of the Watkin Award for Excellence in Biology and was named an Outstanding Greek Scholar representing his fraternity, Sigma Phi Epsilon, and was selected as winner of the Dean's Distinguished Leadership award. Ellison has volunteered with the Denison International Relief Effort, Colleges Against Cancer, the Habitat for Humanity, Newark Education and Literacy, and The Main Place committees of the Denison Community Association and has taken summer medical mission trips to Honduras. He also was captain of the Crew Club rowing team and served on several August Orientation staffs.

Presentation remarks:

"Jon, the first thing one notices in looking at your academic transcript is that there are many letter grades with pluses next to them. What is extraordinary about that fact is that they are A pluses, exceptions to the faculty practice at Denison of rarely awarding A pluses. Indeed, one of your biology professors says that you are 'one of the only A+ students that I have ever had in Molecular Biology in 30 years of teaching.' Your Phi Beta Kappa commitment to your academic work is well known, not only by the faculty but by your friends as well, who allege that you have your own room in the library! You have received the top awards in the Department of Biology, including the Margaret Watkin Award for Excellence in Biology, and you have been frequently sought out as one of the most caring and effective Teaching Assistants in the department's history.

"As a Philosophy minor, you have blended your scientific training with a passionate interest in the ethics of science and in the ethics of medical practice, your chosen profession. In fact, your dedication to the integrity of the profession is the bridge that spans all components of your pursuits at Denison. For example, your pre-med major is biology; you are taking a directed study in philosophy this semester with a focus on trying to specify the obligations of physicians to their patients; you have spent part of three summers making medical mission trips to Honduras; and in your vision statement prior to your participation in the LeaderShape Institute you said that you wanted 'to create a world where health-care opportunities are a right, not a privilege [because] the quality of health care options should be at an equally high standard for everyone, regardless of gender, race or socio-economic status.'

"You have also been part of the Denison International Relief Effort and Colleges Against Cancer; and you have tutored for the Newark Education and Literacy Center, captained the Denison Crew Club, served as the President of Alpha Epsilon Delta, and been named Outstanding Greek Scholar for the 203-04 academic year.

"Jon, we take great pride as the college that you chose to be the springboard for your mission of making the world a better place for all people."