A student heavily involved on campus was named to the USA Today’s 2004 All-USA College Academic Second Team Feb. 11 for his involvement and commitment to fostering student cooperation.

Omar Tesdell, senior in journalism and mass communications and a Daily columnist, has been honored with numerous awards and prestigious internships, but friends say he is always modest.

“Whenever he wins any award of scholarship, he is very secretive about it,” said Nick Wethington, senior in English and a Daily staff writer. “You basically have to worm it out of him; he is very modest.”

Tesdell was named to the second team, which, according to the Web site www.usatoday.com, “honors 60 undergraduates as representatives of all outstanding students at the nation’s colleges and universities.”

According to the Web site, the criteria for selection are designed to “find students who excel not only in scholarship, but also in leadership roles on and off campus. The element given the most weight by the judges is the nominee’s outstanding original academic or intellectual product … and the student’s ability to describe it.”

Tesdell “developed [a] community building model in which disparate groups develop joint public statement, done on campus between Arab and Jewish students, College Republicans and Time for Peace advocates,” according to the Web site.

In spring 2002, Tesdell helped organize a reading of a joint statement by the ISU Hillel and the Arab Student Association. The statement called for an end to the violence in the Middle East.

“It was unique because here we are at the height of tension [in the Middle East], and we had Jewish and Arab students come together here [at Iowa State],” Tesdell said.

In winter 2002, a student organization Tesdell helped form, Time For Peace, was holding public vigils at least once a week. The ISU College Republicans were also holding vigils of their own. Tesdell approached the president of the group, Dave Sprau, junior in journalism and mass communication, and asked him to join in creating a statement of support for the troops, but still a call for peace.

“It was a very unexpected, but pleasant situation for me,” Sprau said. “We were able to put together something that reflected the beliefs of two groups that don’t tend to agree on much … [the statement] was from a shared desire for peace in general.”

Sprau said he felt Tesdell made the whole experience move more smoothly.

“It was a good experience with Omar because he is obviously intelligent; he sees beyond the lines of friend versus foe,” Sprau said.

Tesdell said Time for Peace follows Gandhian processes of social objection.

“We humanize every view rather than demonize any different views,” Tesdell said.

One thing Tesdell said has helped is his support network. He said he felt nonviolence is a learning process for everyone.

“I have been incredibly fortunate to have had support and inspiration from my family, friends, and from the faculty and staff here at the university,” Tesdell said. “I really mean it when I say that none of these projects could have gone forward without their support of care.”