Since 1956, the Alumni Association has been presenting awards to outstanding members of its community in Achievement and Service. In 1962, the Association began presenting awards to the Outstanding Man and Woman in the Senior Class based on recommendations from a committee of Susquehanna administrators. In 2002, the awards were updated to include two additional categories for exemplary Leadership and Young Alumni.
Each year, the Nominations and Awards Committee of the Alumni Association Executive Board meets to choose award winners in each of the four categories. In an exceptional year, two alumni may be chosen for a particular category. Click here to nominate an alumnus. Awards are presented at a banquet over Homecoming Reunion Weekend. Click here for past recipients.
Award Descriptions
Achievement
This award is given to alumni who have achieved distinction in their field as recognized by peers in their professional communities. Consideration is given to alumni whose accomplishments are celebrated widely and regarded as major contributions to their profession or to society.
Leadership
This award is given to alumni who have shown outstanding leadership in their careers or communities. Nominees will have had a significant role in bringing about important change or contributing to outstanding results in their professional, civic, or volunteer activities.
Service
This award is given to alumni who have demonstrated exceptional involvement in their communities or in the Susquehanna University community. Candidates should be unwavering in their dedication to making a difference through duration, scope and versatility of their volunteerism.
Young Alumni
This award is given to alumni graduating in the last two decades who exemplify Susquehanna’s ideals of achievement, leadership and service in their lives and work. This includes achieving distinction in their field, showing outstanding leadership in their careers or communities, and/or demonstrating uncommon volunteerism.
Award
Susquehanna’s bronze Alumni Award medal depicts our Alma Mater represented as a Susquehannock Native American woman whose tribe – and the mighty, scenic Susquehanna River – gave the University its name. The river is expressed in the lower arc of the medal.
The Susquehannocks, noted for their tall and handsome stature, inhabited the river valley at the time of Captain John Smith’s explorations and became extinct during the 18th century.
