The College established in 2002 the President's Medallion Award, bestowed upon those who have distinguished themselves in a particular field or in service to an important cause that has benefited society locally, regionally, nationally, or internationally. The President's Medallion also recognizes men and women in a variety of fields who are role models worthy of emulation by all, particularly by our students at Western New England College.
Past Honorees
Michael J. Ashe Jr. - Sheriff for Hampden County, May 18, 2003, Off-Campus Programs Commencement
William M. Bennett - District Attorney for Hampden County, May 18, 2003, Off-Campus Programs Commencement
Maryse Condé - Novelist, Playwright, and Critic, October 20, 2004, French Department, Humanities Department, and Diversity Task Force event
Ron Copes - Vice President for Community Relations at MassMutual Financial Group, Hartford, CT and Springfield, MA, May 20, 2006, Undergraduate Commencement
Stephen M. Daley - Founder and Executive Director of RadKIDS, May 6, 2004, Benefit for RadKIDS
John DiFava - Chief of MIT Campus Police, May 19, 2002, Graduate and Off-Campus Programs Commencement
Mamie Duncan Gibbs - Broadway Actress, April 24, 2003, "Voices from the Inside" Poetry Reading
Lucy Giuggio Carvalho - Director of Case Management at Jewish Geriatric Services, Longmeadow, MA, May 17, 2008, Undergraduate Commencement
John Greaney - Associate Justice, Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, May 17, 2003, School of Law Commencement
Michael S. Greco - President of the American Bar Association, August 16, 2005, Law Convocation
Anita Hill - Civil Rights Leader, February 25, 2002, Clason Speaker Series
Roderick Jackson - Former girls' basketball coach at Ensley H.S. Birmingham, AL, Jackson vs. Birmingham Board of Education, October 5, 2006, Women in Sports Panel Discussion
Tracy Kidder - Pulitzer prize winning author, October 22, 2003, Athenaeum Series
Harold Hongju Koh - Dean of Yale Law School, September 9, 2008, School of Law Convocation
Ron Laney - Associate Administrator in the Child Protection Division of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, June 4, 2009, Possibilities Symposium
Rebecca Lobo - Former WBNA Basketball Player and Sports Commentator, May 19, 2007, Undergraduate Commencement
Paul Loeb - Author, March 6, 2002, Lecture Day
Dr. Donna Lopiano - president and founder of Sports Management Resources and former CEO of the Women’s Sports Foundation, April 22, 2009, Center for International Sport Business Speaker Series
Dr. Mwelwa Musambachime - Zambia's Ambassador to the U.N., April 10, 2003, April Colloquium
Ellen Ash Peters - Chief Justice (retired) of the Connecticut Supreme Court, August 31, 2006, Law Convocation
Dick Pound - Chair of World Anti-Doping Agency, October 16, 2007, Center for International Sport Business Speaker Series
Thomas Reilly - Massachusetts Attorney General, May 23, 2004, Nontraditional Undergraduate/Graduate Commencement
Maria Reyes - Freedom Writer from Erin Gruwell's English class at Woodrow Wilson High School, Long Beach, CA, September 25, 2007, Freshman Focus
Travis Roy - Hockey player and author, October 5, 2004, Freshman Focus
David S. Sharken - Executive Director of The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, Inc., May 20, 2006, Undergraduate Commencement
Kathrine Switzer - First female runner in Boston Marathon, April 4, 2006
Henry Thomas - Attorney, Activist, and Ally for Western Massachusetts, May 17, 2003, School of Law Commencement
Sally Wittenberg - Executive Director of Volunteer Programs, Springfield (MA) School Volunteers, May 20, 2006, Undergraduate Commencement
Maria Reyes (center) receives the President's Medallion from College President Anthony S. Caprio (right) and Dean of Freshman and Transfer Students Ted Zern (left).
Past Group Honorees
City of Springfield Firefighters, accepted by Chief of Springfield Fire Department Gary C. Cassanelli - May 18, 2002, Undergraduate Commencement
City of Springfield Police Officers, accepted by Chief of Springfield Police Department Paula Meara - May 18, 2002, Undergraduate Commencement
Men and Women of the U.S. Armed Forces, accepted by ROTC Major Jeffery T. Adams - May 18, 2002, Undergraduate Commencement