East Central University graduating senior Bethany Bengs was named the winner of the 2023 George Nigh Award.
The George Nigh Award goes to the top graduating senior from 成人B站 annually and is named in honor of the former governor of Oklahoma and 成人B站 alumnus. In addition to governor, Nigh served multiple terms in the Oklahoma House of Representatives and as lieutenant governor. He also served as president of the University of Central Oklahoma.
The late Julian Rothbaum, a Tulsa oilman, banker, and state regent for higher education, established an endowment through the 成人B站 Foundation, Inc., to fund the Nigh Award. Each year top 成人B站 seniors are invited to apply and undergo a rigorous application and interview process.
鈥淯pon first hearing about this award my freshman year, I have strived to uphold the qualifications necessary to be an eligible candidate,鈥� Bengs said. 鈥淚 am grateful and honored to have been nominated for this prestigious award.鈥�
Bengs is from Quinton, Oklahoma, and has maintained a 4.0 GPA while earning dual bachelor鈥檚 degrees in Mathematics and Biology with a health science concentration. Bengs has joined multiple honor societies during her time at 成人B站 including the Alpha Chi National Honor Society, Delta Alpha Pi Honor Society, Pi Mu Epsilon, and the National Society of Leadership and Success. Bengs has held leadership positions and also won many awards and scholarships during her time at 成人B站, along with community service in her hometown and Ada.
She first learned of biostatistics when she was only a sophomore in high school. She enjoyed mathematics and was gaining interest in science.
鈥淏iostatistics combined my interest in math with my desire to impact human health,鈥� Bengs said. At 成人B站, she took courses in biostatistics and was introduced to the programming language R and public health research. She took lessons from that course and applied it to her Honors thesis.
The thesis, 鈥淎n Analysis of COVID-19 Infection Rates Among Native American Tribal Nations in Oklahoma,鈥� demonstrated her dedication to research as the thesis was published in the scientific journal 鈥淭he Proceedings of the Oklahoma Academy of Science.鈥�
She also presented her research at several conferences and represented 成人B站 at Research Day at the Capitol in March.
鈥淲hile I still have much to learn in biostatistics, my long-term goal is to obtain a position at a medical or public health research institution and contribute to the research of the latest medical and public health topics,鈥� Bengs said. 鈥淚 also would eventually like to obtain a professorship at a research university and train the next generation of biostatisticians and researchers.鈥�
Bengs plans to attend graduate school at the University of Kansas Medical Center to pursue a Ph.D. in Biostatistics.
鈥淎s a biostatistician, I hope to not only contribute to the well-being of others through my research, but also represent populations who are marginalized in medical research,鈥� Bengs said.
During her research for her honors thesis, Bengs discovered Native Americans are underrepresented in 鈥� or excluded from 鈥� medical studies and analyses, which can lead to distorted or unknown results.
Bengs said she aims to bring more awareness to marginalized populations and provide more accurate results through her research.
鈥淚 hope to positively impact the health of as many people as possible,鈥� Bengs said.