OU announced it will award honorary degrees to three individuals in recognition of their achievements and impact on the university.
Award-winning filmmaker Ron Howard, former OU women’s basketball coach Sherri Coale and Chickasaw Nation Secretary of State Bill G. Lance Jr. will be awarded honorary degrees during the Michael F. Price College of Business commencement ceremony at 7 p.m. May 15 at the Lloyd Noble Center.
“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to confer the university’s highest honor upon these three remarkable individuals,” OU President Joseph Harroz Jr. said, according to a press release. “Their contributions to the world around us and dedication to excellence are profound and will continue to impact lives for generations to come.”
Howard’s Oscar-winning filmography includes “Apollo 13” (1995), “A Beautiful Mind” (2001) and “How The Grinch Stole Christmas” (2000).
According to the release, a 2020 gift from Howard helped establish a scholarship at the Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts to support students in the Helmerich School of Drama from rural communities.
The scholarship is named after Howard’s parents, Rance and Jean Howard, Oklahoma natives and OU alums who studied drama.
Coale is an Oklahoma native and former head coach of OU women’s basketball after working as a high school teacher and basketball coach in Edmond and Norman.
She was named head coach in 1996 and over the following 25 years, she led the team to four Big 12 tournament championships and six Big 12 regular season championships, qualified for 19 consecutive NCAA tournaments and led the program to three Final Four appearances. She was named Big 12 Coach of the Year four times.
Coale retired from OU in 2021 and is now a writer and public speaker.
Lance is an OU alum and member of the Oklahoma Hall of Fame. He previously served as administrator of the Chickasaw Nation health system, where he oversaw the creation of the 370,000-square-foot Chickasaw Nation Medical Center in Ada.
Lance served three terms on the OU Foundation Board of Trustees, concluding in 2021.
Lance serves on the Board of Directors of BancFirst and was recently appointed to the University Hospitals Authority and Trust. He also serves on the OU Health Board of Directors and is part of the Executive Committee of the Oklahoma City Chamber.
This story was edited by Macey Thaxton and Audrey McClour. Gretchen Schultz copy edited this story.
