Professional Achievements
In 1995, McDavis was named Person of the Year in Education by The Gainesville Sun. He also received the Post-Secondary Outstanding Educator Award from the North Central Florida Chapter of Phi Delta Kappa in 1996. McDavis was the recipient of the 1997 Black Achiever’s Award in Education from the Florida Conference of Black State Legislators. In 2007, McDavis was one of only six president and CEO-level leaders in the state to be recognized with a Leadership Ohio Award of Excellence.
Upon becoming president of Ohio University in 2004, one of the first major initiatives he led was the development of a strategic planning process. That process led to the creation and implementation of Vision OHIO, the university’s first comprehensive strategic plan.
McDavis and his wife, Deborah, helped launch two key Ohio University scholarship initiatives—the Urban Scholars and Appalachian Scholars programs. The two programs were created to support one of McDavis’s primary goals, which is to increase the diversity of the student population and enhance opportunities for high-achieving students who may not otherwise have an opportunity to get a college education. The Urban Scholars Program was established in 2004 and the Appalachian Scholars Program was established in 2005. These programs provide academically gifted students from disproportionately represented backgrounds with full-tuition scholarships as well as support for textbooks and professional development opportunities. The Urban Scholars Program focuses on students from major metropolitan areas, while the Appalachian Scholars Program selects students from 29 Appalachian counties in Ohio.
On October 28, 2008, McDavis created another important initiative to support increasing diversity. The Interlink Alliance, an educational partnership, was formed with nine member institutions, including Ohio University and eight historically black colleges and universities. In addition to Ohio University, members of the Interlink Alliance include Spelman College in Atlanta; Hampton University in Hampton, Va.; Wilberforce University and Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio; Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, N.C.; North Carolina Central University in Durham, N.C.; South Carolina State University in Orangeburg, S.C.; and Virginia State University in Petersburg, Va.
As of March 2009, the McDavises had contributed $82,400 in support of Ohio University programs and initiatives.
McDavis also has sought to focus efforts on enhancing the university’s reputation as an institution of academic excellence. The success of Ohio University’s Office of Nationally Competitive Awards speaks to the impact of those efforts, with a university record set in the 2007–08 academic year. In addition, Ohio University’s forensics team ranked seventh in the 2009 National Forensics Association National Tournament and the Ohio University College of Business earned a spot on BusinessWeek’s 2009 list of the top 50 undergraduate business programs in the nation. The university’s scholar-athletes have excelled academically, with the volleyball and softball teams recognized by the NCAA as being in the top 10 percent in their respective sports’ Academic Progress Rate.
McDavis has increased environmental integrity for the institution with executive sustainability initiatives. In 2007, he became the first four-year public university president in Ohio to sign the American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment, a campaign to reduce global warming through research, education, and institutional commitments to climate neutrality. McDavis appointed a Presidential Advisory Council for Sustainability Planning, composed of Ohio University faculty, staff, and students, to develop recommendations for a comprehensive sustainability plan and university-wide climate action plan. McDavis also attended the Climate Leadership Summit in Chicago in August 2009 featuring leaders such as keynote speaker and former U.S. President Bill Clinton.
In 2009, McDavis was elected to a third consecutive term as chair of the presidents of Ohio's Inter-University Council (IUC), an association of the 14 public universities in Ohio. As IUC chairman, McDavis was instrumental in developing and recommending a new funding formula for Ohio's public colleges and universities.
As of fall 2008, enrollment across all Ohio University campuses and programs during McDavis’s tenure had increased by 1,200 students to 29,713, the highest total in the university’s history. Preliminary enrollment numbers for fall 2009 show an additional increase of approximately 2,000 students, setting another record for the institution.
In early 2009, after the success of The State vs. Radric Davis, Gucci Mane visited Ohio University to meet President Roderick McDavis because they had similar names.
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