Michelle Ojo has not been at DePaul for long, but she is already making an impact on and off the court. 

On Oct. 27, Ojo, a forward who transferred this offseason from the University of Delaware, was named a Kay Yow Servant Leader, a prestigious award in women’s college basketball. 

The award is named after Kay Yow, former North Carolina State head coach who led the team for 35 years, battling breast cancer for 22 of those years.

In the award’s second year, Ojo becomes the first Blue Demon to earn a nomination.

The award recognizes “people of great character who put the needs of others before their own, who uplift others, and who do it with grace and humility,” according to the foundation’s website. 

Ojo has yet to play an official game for the Blue Demons, although she started in the team’s victorious Oct. 25 scrimmage versus the Milwaukee Panthers, where she scored 12 points and recorded 3 rebounds. 

Outside of helping her squad on the court, Ojo is focused on being “connected” and “community-rooted” away from basketball. She has already made an impact, distributing meals at the Elizabeth Ann Seton Food Pantry while also serving as a member of the school’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, where she is the Inclusion & Belonging Committee Chair.

“She’s done a great job of coming in, working hard,” head coach Jill Pizzotti said. “She’s an unbelievable young woman, just in her approach to the game and how good of an individual she is.”

Ojo, and all other honorees, will don special patches on the jerseys this season to commemorate Yow’s legacy and symbolize their roles as servant leaders. 

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