May 7, 2010

Morningside College Alumni Association honors alumnus and graduating seniors  

The Morningside College Alumni Association presented its 2010 Distinguished Alumni Award to Dr. William Yockey of Sioux City during the college’s senior celebration dinner held May 7 at the Marina Inn.

In addition, the Morningside College Alumni Association presented outstanding senior awards to three members of Morningside’s 2010 graduating class. Recipients of the senior awards were Joshua Benson of Lawton, Iowa, a corporate communications major; Emily Cox of Council Bluffs, Iowa, a music education major; and Chigusa Yoshihara of Okayama, Japan, a business administration major.   

Dr. Yockey, a 1949 Morningside College graduate, served as a faculty member in the college’s chemistry department from 1957 to 1989. He also served on the Morningside College Board of Directors as faculty representative. In recognition of his leadership role on the Morningside campus, Dr. Yockey received the Order of Morningside shortly after his retirement.

Before joining the Morningside faculty, Dr. Yockey worked as the director of laboratory and research at what was then Sioux City’s Lutheran Hospital. He also worked as a hospital consultant in the areas of clinical chemistry and toxicology during his years as a Morningside faculty member and continued to consult after his retirement. He received his master’s degree from Pennsylvania State University and his doctorate from the University of South Dakota.

Morningside College President John Reynders presented the alumni award and cited Dr. Yockey for “his profound influence on students at Morningside, his contributions to his profession and his support for this institution.”

David Holub, a 1970 Morningside graduate and president of the Morningside College Alumni Association Board of Directors, presented the outstanding senior awards. The senior awards are given in the name of the late Brooke Simmons-Goodwin, a 1999 Morningside graduate and past president of the college’s alumni association board. A committee of Morningside faculty and staff select the senior award recipients based on the student’s commitment to campus life, academic achievement and service to the Sioux City area community.