Elliott-Gower and Gillis Named Omicron Delta Kappa Award recipients

Dr. Steve Elliott-Gower and Dr. H. Lee Gillis, Jr. have been named the 2024 faculty award recipients by the Georgia College Circle of Omicron Delta Kappa. Elliott-Gower, who is associate professor of political science, is the recipient of the Flisch-Harris Award for Leadership in the Cause of a Liberal Education. Gillis, who is professor of psychology and chair of the Department of Psychological Science, is the recipient of the Paul Jahr Award for Civic Leadership and Commitment to Democratic Values.

Elliott-Gower and Gillis will receive their awards at the Circle's annual Induction Convocation and Lecture Thursday, Jan. 25, 2024. 

The Flisch-Harris Award recognizes leadership in the cause of a liberal education. The award is named jointly for Julia Anna Flisch and Dr. Robin O. Harris. Flisch (1861-1941) served on the faculty of Georgia College (then Georgia Normal & Industrial College) from 1891 to 1905 and was a distinguished journalist and advocate for public education, known for her admonition to “Give the girls a chance!” at equitable learning. Robin O. Harris ‘91, ‘93 is associate professor emerita and was inducted into Circle membership in 2003. She taught history and sociology at Georgia College from 1994 until 2011 and served as director of experiential learning for five years. She is Flisch’s biographer and an authority on Progressive Era education reform in the U.S. South.

The Paul Jahr Award honors excellence in civic leadership and commitment to democratic values. The award is named for Dr. Paul K. Jahr, who served 25 years at Georgia College, retiring in 2013 as associate vice president for student affairs. With Georgia College’s designation as Georgia’s public liberal arts university in 1996, Jahr led the institution’s transformation into a residential liberal arts college. His efforts were instrumental in the Georgia College Circle receiving its charter from Omicron Delta Kappa in 2001.

The Circle inaugurated both awards in 2021, in celebration of the 20th anniversary of its charter.

Dr. STEVEN ELLIOTT-GOWER 

Dr. Steven Elliott-Gower is associate professor of political science in the Department of Government & Sociology and faculty research fellow in the Office of Leadership Programs. A specialist in international political economy and world politics, he is the editor of Export Controls in Transition: Perspectives, Problems, and Prospects; The Impact of Governments on East-West Economic Relations; and International Cooperation on Nonproliferation Export Controls, among other contributions. Elliott-Gower joined the Georgia College faculty in 2008 and directed the Honors Program until 2020. In both 2013 and 2014, he received the Georgia Political Science Association’s Award for Teaching Excellence, and in 2023 received the Department of Government and Sociology’s Award for Teaching Excellence. Most recently, the Council on Foreign Relations named him a Higher Education Ambassador, charged with promoting global literacy among undergraduate students through engaging, creative materials and pedagogies. Elliott-Gower graduated with honors from the University of Lancaster and holds master’s and doctoral degrees in political science from the University of Georgia.

Dr. LEE GILLIS

Dr. H. Lee Gillis Jr. is professor of psychology and chair of the Department of Psychological Science. The most senior member of the Georgia College faculty, Gillis joined the university in 1986 and was soon after named the university’s Distinguished Professor in 1992-93. Gillis is a pioneer in the field of adventure therapy, authoring some 40 scholarly works, including the foundational textbook Adventure Therapy: Therapy, Research & Practice. He is a board member and fellow of the Society of Group Psychology and Group Psychotherapy (American Psychological Association, Division 49), serving as the society’s president in 2013-14. In 2020, he received the American Psychological Association’s Arthur Teicher Group Psychologist of the Year Award. In 2012, the Association for Experiential Education named Gillis the recipient of the Michael Stratton Practitioner Award, which recognizes an individual who demonstrates that a practitioner can bring about significant change and impact in the lives of people in their program. Gillis earned a bachelor’s degree from Davidson College and holds a Master of Arts degree from Middle Tennessee State University and Ph.D. from the University of Georgia.