Founders Day
Thank you to everyone who attended the ninth annual PNW Founders Day Celebration!
Congratulations to our years of service honorees, award nominees and Outstanding Faculty, Staff and Student Award recipients. Your dedication strengthens Purdue University Northwest, and we wish you continued success.
We also appreciate the faculty, staff and students who helped make this event possible, with a special thank you to the Founders Day Committee for their hard work and leadership.
2025 Founders Day Award Winners
Outstanding Academic Administrative Leadership Award
Rebecca Stankowski
Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs
Outstanding Administrative Leadership Staff Award
Scott Parsons
Senior Director, Facilities and Grounds
Outstanding Management and Administrative Professional Award
Britt Hudson
Interim Dean of Students
Marla Funk
Procurement and Auxiliary Services Administrator
Outstanding Clerical Staff Award
Barbara Phillips
Clerk, Office of the Registrar
Caren Thomas
Administrative Assistant, Physical Facilities
Outstanding Service Staff Award
Joshua Miller
Custodian, Building Services
Michael Prater
Grounds Foreman
Outstanding Faculty Scholarship Award
Meden Isaac-Lam
Professor of Chemistry
Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award
Omeed Ilchi
Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice
Outstanding Faculty Engagement Award
Nicky Jackson
Professor of Criminal Justice and Executive Director, Center for Justice and Post-Exoneration Assistance
Outstanding Undergraduate Student Award
Mya Bell
Outstanding Graduate Student Award
Jason Wyatt
Purdue University Focus Award
2025 PNW Founders Day “Years of Service” Honorees
| Name | Years of Service |
|---|---|
| Debra Grant | 40 |
| Gisele Casanova | 35 |
| Young Choi | 35 |
| John Feeney | 35 |
| Nicky Ali Jackson | 35 |
| Weihua Ruan | 35 |
| David McLees | 35 |
| Linda McClaughry-Erwin | 35 |
| Thomas Dobrowski | 30 |
| Elizabeth Rodriguez | 30 |
| Jose Ortiz | 30 |
| Karen Sullivan | 30 |
| Jin Lu | 30 |
| Amlan Mitra | 30 |
| Herlinda Ramirez-Barradas | 30 |
| Diana Underwood-Gregg | 30 |
| Connie Fidanza | 30 |
| Diane Sullivan | 25 |
| Laura Odom | 25 |
| Patricia Rodda | 25 |
| Kenneth C. Holford | 25 |
| Curtis Creighton | 25 |
| Masoud Fathizadeh | 25 |
| Colin Fewer | 25 |
| Nancy Ross | 25 |
| Karen Klosinski | 20 |
| Emily Hixon | 20 |
| Kara Griffin | 20 |
| Deborah Blades | 20 |
| Cheryl DeLeon | 20 |
| Jonathan Swarts | 20 |
| Daniel Wilbur | 20 |
| Mita Choudhury | 20 |
| Neeti Parashar | 20 |
| Adam Rengstorf | 20 |
| Michael Roller | 20 |
| Wendy St Jean | 20 |
| Radmila Stanic | 20 |
| Hairong Zhao | 20 |
| Donna Adelsperger | 20 |
| Joseph Ward | 20 |
| Robert Kramer | 20 |
| Tom Albano | 15 |
| Sara Soneye | 15 |
| Yanira Diaz | 15 |
| Kenisha Williams | 15 |
| Sammy Chapman | 15 |
| Victor Santiago | 15 |
| Amy Bishop | 15 |
| Jean Jiang | 15 |
| Cindy Robbins | 15 |
| Shengyong Zhang | 15 |
| Nicole Hartford-Rago | 15 |
| Amy Hemingway | 15 |
| Sharon Gurn | 15 |
| Brooke Hewson | 15 |
| Marcia Keith | 10 |
| Jodi Allen | 10 |
| Matthew Norton | 10 |
| Simone Mason | 10 |
| Ryan Hayes | 10 |
| Dianna Vaughn | 10 |
| Brian Miller | 10 |
| Jeffery Williams | 10 |
| Katie Bowers | 10 |
| Ashley Clark | 10 |
| Heather Bowers | 10 |
| Kimberly Brunt | 10 |
| Mary Beth Connolly | 10 |
| Dawit Gizachew | 10 |
| Robert Hallock | 10 |
| Maged Mikhail | 10 |
| Robin Miller | 10 |
| Pamela Saylor | 10 |
| Jane Thomas | 10 |
| Wubeshet Woldemariam | 10 |
| Khair Al Shamaileh | 10 |
| Grethe Hystad | 10 |
| Kathleen Stompor | 10 |
| Donna Gonzalez | 10 |
| Peter Bailey | 10 |
| James Hance | 10 |
| Matthew Wells | 10 |
| Jesus De La Cruz | 5 |
| Darien Thompson | 5 |
| Kathaleen Levenda-Smith | 5 |
| Thomas Broviak | 5 |
| Jillian Miller | 5 |
| Izabela Jannotta | 5 |
| Tim Griffin | 5 |
| Yesenia Avalos | 5 |
| Therese Johnson | 5 |
| Delilah Cardenas | 5 |
| Tristan Zink | 5 |
| Matthew Bauman | 5 |
| Kristin Burton | 5 |
| John Durocher | 5 |
| Mary Moell | 5 |
| Virginia Pleasant | 5 |
| Cheng Zhang | 5 |
| Austin Clark | 5 |
| Scott Schaller | 5 |
| Atanu Pathak | 5 |
| Sylvia Brantley | 5 |
| Sasha Cano | 5 |
To request a disability-related accommodation, please contact the Office of Institutional Equity at oie@pnw.edu or (219) 989-2163 five days prior to the event.
In accordance with Purdue policies, all persons have equal access to Purdue University’s educational programs, services and activities, without regard to race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin or ancestry, genetic information, marital status, parental status, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, disability or status as a veteran. See Purdue’s Nondiscrimination Policy Statement. If you have any questions or concerns regarding these policies, please contact the Office of Institutional Equity at oie@pnw.edu or (219) 989-2337.