About the Distinguished Alumni Awards
The Distinguished Alumni Awards were established in 1986 as a way to recognize those graduates who have made a difference. With each graduation ceremony emerges a new group of leaders from the hallowed halls of this University. Upon graduation, our alumni are ready to represent the best Daemen has to offer in the fields of business, finance, medicine, health sciences, education, law, government, and the arts. Award selection is determined by the governing body of the alumni association. The awardees are chosen by a committee of alumni representatives. We have recognized the vast array of growth, achievements, and societal contributions of our alumni.
The Alumni Association’s governing body, the National Board of Governors, hosts the Distinguished Alumni Award Ceremony each year to highlight the achievements of our alumni. The committee is comprised of members of the National Board of Governors and is led by the Chair of the Nominating Committee. The Distinguished Alumni Awards are held each year during the fall. To learn more view the events calendar.
To nominate someone for 2022 consideration, please go to the Distinguished Alumni Award nomination form. You can view the 2021 ceremony.
Descriptions of Alumni Awards
This award recognizes graduates who focused their lives on improving their career field: have made significant impact on their profession, and have improved society through their chosen careers.
This award recognizes graduates that have dedicated their lives to serving the needs of others through volunteer activities, helping those less fortunate from physical, emotional, medical or psychological concerns, or working to improve society through civic organizations or governmental committees.
This award recognizes graduates who have been moved to give back to the institution that provided the base for their successful lives. These leaders have participated in programs such as service learning, Cooperative Education/Career Development, hosted student teachers, physical therapy students, physician assistant students, scholarship fundraisers, acted as class agents, or contributed to the student life at Daemen University.
This Premier award recognizes a graduate who has achieved distinction in all three of the above categories.
This award recognizes a graduate from the last decade who falls into one of the above categories selected by the committee and nominated by a member of the Daemen University community (alum, faculty, staff and administration).
Awards Questions
Each award has a set of questions, created by the Board of Governors, to aid in the nomination process. You fill out the official Distinguished Alumni Form and submit your nomination for consideration. Below are the questions for each award:
- Nominee's Type of Employment:
- Positions achieved in this employment and others:
- How have the nominee's achievements positively made an impact on society?
- List the volunteer activities, civic/government organizations or committees of the nominee and note how long has the nominee been involved in these activities?
- How have the nominee's volunteer activities directly serviced the needs of others?
- What specific university program has the nominee participated in since graduation and note how long has the nominee been involved in these activities?
- How have the nominee's activities directly impacted the university?
To submit a nomination for the Distinguished Alumni Award answer all the questions above for Advancement in Career, Outstanding Service to the Community & Dedication to the University.
To submit a nomination for the Graduate of the Last Decade Award select one of the award types, Advancement in Career, Outstanding Service to the Community or Dedication to the University, and answer the questions.