Cook Society Honors Five for Helping to Build Stronger Communities

Durham Mayor O鈥橬eal receives Distinguished Service Award

Cook Society Winners, from left: Eunice Sanders, sister of Durham Mayor Elaine O鈥橬eal; Kamillah Jena Kassam; Lisa Davis; Brigit Maria Carter; Kansi Udochukwu; and Kim Hewitt, vice president for institutional equity. Photo by HuthPhoto
Cook Society Winners, from left: Eunice Sanders, sister of Durham Mayor Elaine O鈥橬eal; Kamillah Jena Kassam; Lisa Davis; Brigit Maria Carter; Kansi Udochukwu; and Kim Hewitt, vice president for institutional equity. Photo by HuthPhoto

Durham Mayor Elaine O鈥橬eal calls herself a daughter of Durham, and the native of the West End neighborhood has a record of long service to the community as judge, political leader and community activist to prove it.

For that career of seeking to build a strong community, O鈥橬eal received the Distinguished Service Award, one of five members of the Duke and local community celebrated for their activism at the Samuel DuBois Cook Society dinner Monday night at the Washington Duke Inn.

The mission of the Cook Society is to recognize, celebrate and affirm the presence of African-American students, faculty and staff at Duke. The awards were named to honor the scholarship and activism of Samuel DuBois Cook, a renowned scholar and activist who was the university鈥檚 first Black faculty member. Cook later served as a university trustee.

Kim Hewitt, vice president of the Office for Institutional Equity, presided over the ceremony.

鈥淭his event clearly holds deep meaning for the Duke Community and in this moment where we are seeing an assault on Black history and culture in some parts of the country, our role as members of this community who are deeply committed to the advancement of racial equity is ever more critical,鈥 Hewitt said.

鈥淎s we celebrate Dr. Cook, his words are reminder to us of what we need to do in order to sustain our commitment in the face of resistance and backlash: 鈥楬ave a vision of excellence, a dream of success and work like hell.鈥欌

Samuel Dubois Cook
Samuel Dubois Cook

In honoring O鈥橬eal, the society paid tribute to a leader whose roots in Durham stretch for generations. With a bachelor鈥檚 and law degree from N.C. Central University, O鈥橬eal was a judge for 24 years and was the first woman to be named the chief judge of the county鈥檚 District Court. In 2011 Durham voters elected her the first woman Superior Court Judge in the county鈥檚 history.

She was elected mayor in 2021.

O鈥橬eal has long worked with Duke officials to improve university-city relations and to advise the university on steps that would build a stronger community.

鈥淓laine has the heart of a public servant and a deep abiding love for her hometown and for all who choose to call Durham home,鈥 Hewitt read in the award citation.

In addition to O鈥橬eal, Cook Society Awards were presented to the following:

  • Kansi Udochukwu, a senior history major, received the Undergraduate Student Award. The president of DukeAfrica, Udochukwu currently serves on the President鈥檚 Council on Black Affairs. She also works with the Duke Impact Investing Group, which analyzes data from startups in the Durham region.
  • Kamillah Jena Kassam, a chemistry Ph.D. candidate, received the Graduate Student Award. Studying in the lab of Professor Amanda Hargrove, Kassam has worked on issues of equity and inclusion both at Duke and across higher education. She currently works as director of diversity, equity and inclusion for the Graduate and Professional Student Government.
  • Lisa Davis, director of operations for the Duke-N.C. Central Bridge Office, received the Staff Award for her efforts in community-based public health. Davis also serves as director of special projects for the Duke Clinical and Translational Science Institute. A health behaviorist, Davis has helped raised attention to programs to improve population health among underrepresented minorities and has won several awards in health education.
  • Brigit Maria Carter, professor and associate dean for diversity and inclusion at the School of Nursing, received the Distinguished Faculty Award. Her current educational research focuses on students鈥 experiences with microaggressions and developing strategies to mitigate the impact of microaggressions. Carter is a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing, an Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity, and a Duke Teaching for Equity fellow. She retired from the U. S. Navy as a commander after 28 years of service in 2018.