Faculty Member of the Year

2025 Celebration of Distinction honors alumni leaders

Colleen Rich — Mon, 15 Sep 2025 20:01:01 +0000

2025 Celebration of Distinction honors alumni leaders Colleen Rich Mon, 09/15/2025 - 16:01

For more than 30 years, �鶹��Ƶ’s Alumni Association (GMUAA) has recognized the achievements of George �鶹��Ƶ alumni at its annual Celebration of Distinction awards program. Since it was first held in 1975, this program has evolved from a reception honoring four alumni, to become one of the premier Alumni Association functions each year.

The GMUAA selects five nominees for the following awards: Alumnus/a of the Year, Alumni Service Award, Faculty Member of the Year, Senior of the Year, and Graduate of the Last Decade (G.O.L.D.). Distinguished alumni from colleges/units and alumni chapters were also recognized.

Here are this year’s top five honorees:

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Saddam Azlan Salim, BS Public Administration ’12, MPA ’15, is Alumnus of the Year. While growing up in his native Bangladesh, Salim and his family experienced severe drought followed by the flood of 1998, the country's most extreme and long-lasting flood of the century. His family came to the United States when he was 10. After experiencing homelessness shortly after moving to the United States, his family settled in Fairfax County, Virginia, where Salim attended Falls Church High School and then �鶹��Ƶ. He now works in federal financial management and consulting. In November 2023, he was elected to the Virginia Senate and represent the 37th District.

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Janis P. Tupesis, BA Biology ‘95, received the Alumni Service Award. He is a faculty member in the BerbeeWalsh Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Wisconsin–Madison School of Medicine and Public Health and vice president of the International Federation for Emergency Medicine. He is recognized for his global work on emergency health care and education and received the 2018 Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award from the Global Emergency Medicine Academy. Among his roles, Tupesis serves as a volunteer technical consultant at the emergency, trauma, and acute care program in the World Health Organization’s Department for Management of Noncommunicable Diseases, Disability, Violence, and Injury Prevention. During his time at George �鶹��Ƶ, Tupesis was a student athlete—serving as an outside hitter on the men's volleyball team for four years.

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Merone Hailemeskel, BA Economics ’15, MPP ’17, received the Graduate of the Last Decade (G.O.L.D.) Award. She is the digital director and communications associate for former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama. Hailemeskel also worked on the first lady’s Reach Higher initiative, where she led research efforts and awarded more than $250,000 in grants to support public school teachers and school counselors, and the Better Make Room campaign, which encourages students to complete their education past high school. She was previously communication and digital director at Common App, supporting their 900 member colleges and universities.

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Leeya Mehta, director of George �鶹��Ƶ’s Alan Cheuse International Writers Center, is Faculty Member of the Year. She is a prize-winning poet, fiction writer, and essayist whose short fiction and poetry have appeared in publications nationally and internationally. Mehta received the 2024 College of Humanities and Social Sciences Faculty Civic Excellence Award for her work within the classroom and the curation of the Baldwin100 project that celebrated the centennial of James Baldwin's literary contributions. The project collaborated with 16 Washington, D.C., area organizations to produce 28 events and exhibitions featuring dozens of visual artists, musicians, and writers and received two American Graphic Design Awards. Read more about her.

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Haley White, BA Art History; BS Business Management ’25, is Senior of the Year. As a student, the Lynchburg, Virginia, native helped lead the Costello College of Business Day of Service event, which included packing 3,000 pounds of donated food. White was the design lead for the �鶹��Ƶ Chooses Kindness Guidebook, served as a teaching assistant, and was the creative mind behind many posters and flyers on campus. She co-wrote numerous articles and was featured in the Costello College’s brand launch video. She plans to spend time working in North Carolina and traveling following graduation. Read more about her.

In addition to the five honorees, 18 alumni received Distinguished Alumni Awards from their school, college, or affinity alumni chapter at this year’s September event.

See the full list of awardees

Connect with the Alumni Association

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Alumnus of the Year

2024 Celebration of Distinction honors alumni leaders

Colleen Rich — Tue, 15 Oct 2024 16:41:32 +0000

2024 Celebration of Distinction honors alumni leaders Colleen Rich Tue, 10/15/2024 - 12:41

Each year, the �鶹��Ƶ Alumni Association’s annual Celebration of Distinction recognizes outstanding alumni, faculty members, and students.

Here are this year’s honorees:

Hollis Kosco. Photo provided

Hollis Kosco, BA Speech Communication ’94, is Alumna of the Year. She is the senior transportation manager for FIFA World Cup 2026 in Miami, Florida, where she oversees operational planning in three countries at 16 stadiums with 48 participating teams. Kosco was a member of both George �鶹��Ƶ’s 1993 NCAA tournament runner-up women’s soccer team and the U.S. national handball team. Her international career in sports management and communications has included seven Olympic games, two Asian Games, the 2015 Pan American Games, the 2022 FIFA World Cup, and the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup.

Kimiko Lighty. Photo provided

Kimiko Lighty, MAIS ’10, received the Alumni Service Award. She is the founding executive director of Restorative Arlington (RA). An innovator in peace building and conflict resolution techniques, Lighty has been involved with RA since the initiative began in 2020. She led the design and implementation of RA’s Heart of Safety Restorative Justice Conferencing Program, a diversion program serving Arlington’s public schools, legal system, and community, and continues to serve as a strategic advisor to the organization. In partnership with the non profit Doorways, RA has been awarded a five-year $1.5 million grant award from the federal Office on Violence Against Women to address harms resulting from intimate partner violence, dating and domestic violence, stalking, and sexual assault.

Kala J. West. Photo provided

Kala J. West, BA Communication ’15, received the Graduate of the Last Decade (G.O.L.D.) Award. She is an entrepreneur, media production consultant, and host of Sunday Morning Praise and Morning Inspiration on WURD Radio (96.1 FM/900 AM). She is also a media professional for the Penn Sports Network. West has been recognized by George �鶹��Ƶ’s Black Alumni Chapter among its 2023 40 Under 40 Distinguished Alumni, as a 2023 20 Under 40 COGIC Achievers Award honoree, and among Funtimes magazine’s 30 Under 30 People to Watch in 2017.

Gabrielle Belle. Photo provided

Gabriele Belle, an instructional associate professor in George �鶹��Ƶ’s Department of Physics and Astronomy, is Faculty Member of the Year. She supervises all astronomy and college physics lab courses and teaches physics in the Enlisted to Medical Degree Preparatory Program. Belle is also a member of the university’s Nano-IMAGINE Council, which supports the growth of Virginia’s nanotech sector. Her research has included investigating quantum well structures with laser spectroscopy in high magnetic fields, developing new semiconductor devices, and building satellites to explore the GPS signal above the GPS satellites orbiting the Earth, for which she received the Air Force Association’s Citation of Honor and the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Special Recognition Award.

Celine Apenteng. Photo provided

Celine Apenteng, BA Conflict Analysis and Resolution ’24, is Senior of the Year. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree in international security and expects to graduate in May 2025. As an undergraduate, she served as vice president in Student Government, speaker of the Student Senate, a member of the President’s Student Advisory Board, and co-chair of the Student Advisory Council for the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia. Over the past year, Apenteng interned at the White House in the Office of Public Engagement and for the U.S. Department of State. She also works with the Carter School’s John Mitchell Jr. Program for History, Justice, and Race to promote a more informed dialogue on the intersections between historical memory, justice, and racial reconciliation.

In addition to the five honorees, 18 alumni received Distinguished Alumni Awards from their school, college, or affinity alumni chapter at this year’s October event. See the full list of awardees.

See the full list of awardees

Connect with the Alumni Association

2022 Celebration of Distinction honors alumni leaders

Colleen Rich — Thu, 20 Oct 2022 15:43:13 +0000

2022 Celebration of Distinction honors alumni leaders Colleen Rich Thu, 10/20/2022 - 11:43

More about the Alumni Association

For more than 30 years, the �鶹��Ƶ Alumni Association has honored outstanding alumni, faculty members, and students at their annual Celebration of Distinction. This year’s celebration was held Friday, October 21. The 2022 awardees include a diverse group of Patriots who exemplify service to others.

David J. Freeman

Alumnus of the Year David J. Freedman, BA Philosophy ’98, is a partner with the Pennsylvania law firm Barley Snyder LLP, where his practice focuses on employment litigation and higher education and immigration law. He has received numerous accolades, especially for his extensive pro bono work. The Central Penn Business Journal recognized Freedman as one of the 30 most influential legal professionals in central Pennsylvania and awarded him the Legal Excellence Award for pro bono service. The Pennsylvania Immigration Resource Center has awarded Freedman its Pro Bono Attorney of the Year Award three times, most recently in 2021.

Victoria N. Salmon

Victoria N. Salmon, DA Education (Community College) ’97, received the Alumni Service Award. She is associate dean emerita for graduate studies in �鶹��Ƶ’s College of Visual and Performing Arts (CVPA). In 2007, Salmon established the CVPA Office of Graduate Studies, which added seven new graduate degrees in the college in seven years. When she retired in 2014, CVPA established the Victoria N. Salmon Outstanding Graduate Student Award in her honor. Salmon continues to serve the university as chair of the Arts at �鶹��Ƶ Board and as an adjunct faculty member in the Arts Management Program.

Raquel Gonzalez

Raquel Gonzalez, BA Integrative Studies ’07, MS Conflict Analysis and Resolution ’12, received the Graduate of the Last Decade (G.O.L.D.) Award. They are a first-generation college graduate and public servant dedicated to uplifting marginalized communities. Prior to their current work in government leadership training and inclusivity efforts, they spent four years in New York state government, leading operations, policy, and diversity and inclusion initiatives. They were named a 40 Under 40 Rising Latino Star by the Hispanic Coalition of New York in 2018. Previously, Gonzalez was a presidential appointee in four federal agencies and at the White House during the Obama administration.

Wendi Manuel-Scott

Faculty Member of the Year Wendi Manuel-Scott is a professor of integrative studies and history and an affiliate faculty member in the Women and Gender Studies Program, African and African American Studies Program, and the Carter School’s John Mitchell Jr. Program for History, Justice, and Race. Manuel-Scott was integral to the Enslaved Children of George �鶹��Ƶ project, which led to the creation of the Enslaved People of George �鶹��Ƶ Memorial on Wilkins Plaza. She is the co-chair of �鶹��Ƶ’s Anti-Racism and Inclusive Excellence Task Force.

Dominique Dowling

Senior of the Year Dominique Dowling, BA Integrative Studies ’22, is currently pursuing a master’s in early childhood education for diverse learners at �鶹��Ƶ. She has served in several leadership roles on and off campus, including as president of the �鶹��Ƶ chapter of the NAACP and the College of Humanities and Social Sciences Ambassadors and as student representative on university committees, such as the Anti-Racism and Inclusive Excellence Task Force. In 2021 Dowling selected to be part of the 2021 Virginia Governor’s Fellows Program and worked for then Virginia Secretary of Education Atif Qarni, MA History ’09.

See the full list of honorees, including the 14 distinguished alumni chapter recipients.