Woman giving speech at a podium at the NYU Alumni Awards event Two men announcing award at a podium at the NYU Alumni Awards event Group of nicely dressed people posing for photo in front of a NYU banner Woman accepting an NYU Alumni award on stage Group of nicely dressed people posing for photo at the NYU Alumni Awards event

NYU Alumni Association Awards

The NYU Alumni Association is proud to recognize outstanding graduates for their exceptional personal and professional achievements. The 2023 NYU Alumni Awards will be held Friday, April 14 from 12:00-2:00 PM at Gotham Hall in NYC.

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Nominate Distinguished alumni awards Alumni Volunteer Awards

Recent Honorees

These honorees exemplify NYU's spirit through their contributions to their communities and around the world.

  • Christy Turlington Burns in a white sweater
    Meet Christy

    Distinguished Alumni Award

    Christy Turlington Burns

    GAL ’99

    Founder and President, Every Mother Counts

    Christy Turlington Burns is the founder and president of Every Mother Counts (EMC), an organization that has invested more than $27 million in programs focused on making pregnancy and childbirth safe for every mother, everywhere.
  • Eduardo D. Rodriguez
    Meet Eduardo

    Distinguished Alumni Award

    Eduardo D. Rodriguez

    DEN ’92

    MD, DDS

    Eduardo D. Rodriguez, MD, DDS, serves as the Helen L. Kimmel Professor of Reconstructive Plastic Surgery and as Chair of the Hansjörg Wyss Department of Plastic Surgery at NYU Langone, specializing in reconstructive and cosmetic surgery.
  • Quemuel Arroyo
    Meet Quemuel

    Distinguished Young Alumni Award

    Quemuel Arroyo

    CAS ’12, WAG ’20

    Chief Accessibility Officer and Senior Advisor to the Chairman and CEO, MTA

    Quemuel “Q” Arroyo joined the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) in 2021 as the organization's first agency-wide Chief Accessibility Officer. In this capacity, Arroyo leads the implementation of policies, initiatives, and programs that reimagine and advance accessibility throughout the organization.
  • Jennifer Curry
    Meet Jennifer

    Distinguished Young Alumni Award

    Jennifer Curry

    WAG ’07, STEINHARDT ’14

    Founder, Change Impact

    Jennifer Curry, EdD, founded Change Impact in 2017 to help social impact organizations achieve results and advance equity.
  • Rabbi Alvin Kass
    Meet Rabbi Alvin

    Eugene J. Keogh Award for Distinguished Public Service

    Rabbi Alvin Kass

    STEINHARDT ’76

    Chief Chaplain, NYPD

    Chief Chaplain Rabbi Dr. Alvin Kass was appointed to the New York City Police Department (NYPD) in 1966, making him the most tenured chaplain in the NYPD.
  • NYU Alumni Club in Los Angeles
    Meet the NYU Alumni Club in Los Angeles

    Event of the Year

    NYU Alumni Club in Los Angeles

    15th Annual Holiday Party on Ice

    This year, the NYU Alumni Club in Los Angeles partnered with 3 other local NYU alumni clubs (Tisch West, Stern LA, Gallatin LA) to host a restructured version of our biggest and most beloved event—the annual NYU alumni holiday party.
  • NYU Alumni Club in Japan
    Meet The NYU Alumni Club in Japan

    Innovation of the Year

    NYU Alumni Club in Japan

    World EATrip: Year-End Rally - Imaginary Travel through quintessential food around the world

    The NYU Alumni Club in Japan marked the relaxing of coronavirus restrictions by holding an event called “World EATrip 2021: Year End Rally - Imaginary Travel through quintessential food around the world.”
  • Arianna Deans
    Meet Arianna

    Volunteer of the Year

    Arianna Deans

    Communications Leader for the NYU Alumni Club in Los Angeles

    Arianna Deans is a southern native that calls Atlanta, GA, home. She is currently a second-year doctoral student in social work and a residential community coordinator at the University of Southern California.
  • NYU Alumni Club in South Florida
    Meet the NYU Alumni Club in South Florida

    Club of Distinction

    NYU Alumni Club in South Florida

    The NYU Alumni Club in South Florida was established in 2003. For 19 years, the club has hosted professional, social, academic, cultural, and service program opportunities.
  • Tom Healey
    Meet Tom

    New Volunteer of the Year

    Tom Healey

    President of NYU Alumni in Tech

    Tom Healey has a long career as a senior executive in the Financial Services industry and is currently a consultant to banks and private equity firms in the Fintech industry. Tom held senior technology and business positions at Citibank, Deutsche Bank and Bloomberg, LP.
  • Dasha Rettew
    Meet Dasha

    Meritorious Service Award

    Dasha Rettew

    GAL ’14

    NYUAA Past President and Young Alumni Trustee

    Dasha exemplifies and embodies the University motto, "to persevere and to excel," both in her professional work as Senior Executive Advisor of Reservoir Advisors and personally as an outstanding leader of our alumni community. Dasha is a member of the NYUAA Board of Directors, an NYUAA Past President, a Young Alumni Trustee, and a generous supporter of NYU in a multitude of ways. She holds the distinction of being the only "pandemic President," conducting all of her NYUAA business remotely during her two-year tenure as NYUAA President.
  • Christine Schneider
    Meet Christine

    Meritorious Service Award

    Christine Schneider, Posthumous

    STERN ’94

    Former Chair, Stern Alumni Council

    Christine, who passed in April 2020 to breast cancer, made the decision to leave a transformative testamentary gift, which ultimately resulted in $4.3 million toward undergraduate scholarships at Stern. Schneider was a long-time volunteer, former chair of the Stern Alumni Council, and an instrumental part of the establishment of the Stern Women in Business (SWIB) Alumnae Committee. She also helped found the Career Center for Working Professionals.
Group of nicely dress people posing with an award

Distinguished
Alumni Awards

The NYU Alumni Association is proud to recognize outstanding graduates for their exceptional personal and professional achievements. Awardees are selected through a comprehensive nomination and evaluation process by the Awards Committee of the NYUAA Board. Their contributions to their communities and around the world exemplify NYU’s spirit. Each spring, honorees are recognized at the NYU Alumni Awards luncheon in New York City.

Learn more about Distinguished Alumni awards

Woman on stage accepting an NYU Alumni Award

Alumni Volunteer
Awards

When alumni volunteers give of their time and their talent, they demonstrate what it means to have Violet Pride! As a way to celebrate our alumni volunteer community, the NYU Alumni Association celebrates and recognizes the exemplary commitment of officially-recognized clubs, groups and individuals through seven distinct award categories.

These awards are given to officially-recognized clubs, groups, and volunteers who have effectively engaged their alumni constituency and fulfilled or furthered the mission of the NYU Alumni Association through innovative events and community-building strategies, sustained leadership in engaging alumni, and cultivating the spirit of NYU pride.

Honorees are selected by fellow alumni volunteers and celebrated at the NYU Alumni Association's annual volunteer recognition event.

Learn more about Alumni Volunteer awards

Nominations

Nominations will be accepted on a rolling basis. Submit your nominations today!

Nominate

Past Honorees

View past NYUAA award honorees from 2014 to today. To reset filters, scroll back to the default title (i.e., if using the Industry filter, navigate back to the word Industry at the top of the filter.)

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