INDIANAPOLIS (August 28, 2006) — Ivy Tech Community College President Gerald I. Lamkin has been named a "Sagamore of the Wabash" by Governor Mitch Daniels.

The award, considered to be the highest honor an Indiana governor bestows, was made today (8/28) in conjunction with Lamkin's announcement of his plans to step down as the college's president on June 30, 2007. Governor Daniels is the fifth governor to recognize President Lamkin as a "Sagamore of the Wabash."

The Sagamore of the Wabash award was created during the term of Governor Ralph Gates, who served from 1945 to 1949. Governor Gates was to attend a tri-state meeting in Louisville with officials from the states of Ohio and Kentucky. Aides to the governor discovered that the governor of Kentucky was preparing Kentucky Colonel certificates for Governor Gates and Senator Robert A. Taft, who was to represent the State of Ohio. The Hoosiers decided that Indiana should have an appropriate award to present in return.

The term "sagamore" was used by the American Indian Tribes of the northeastern United States to describe a lesser chief or a great man among the tribe to whom the true chief would look for wisdom and advice.

Each governor since Gates has presented the certificates in their own way. It has been said that one governor even resorted to wearing full Indian headdress as he read the scrolls. The award is highest honor, which the Governor of Indiana bestows. It is a personal tribute usually given to those who have rendered a distinguished service to the state or to the governor. Among these who have received Sagamores have been astronauts, presidents, ambassadors, artists, musicians, politicians, and ordinary citizens who have contributed greatly to our Hoosier heritage.

Ivy Tech Community College is the state's second largest public post-secondary institution with over 100,000 students enrolled this spring. Ivy Tech has 23 campuses throughout Indiana. It serves as the state's engine of workforce development, offering affordable degree programs and training that are aligned with the needs of its community along with courses and programs that transfer to other colleges and universities in Indiana. It is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.