
Awards
Alumni are one of Acadia University's greatest assets. The Acadia Alumni Association offers and supports a suite of awards and honours to recognize and showcase those who have earned distinction and achieved inspirational success in life and career. Their diverse contributions reflect favorably on Acadia and serve to represent and promote the University both here at home and around the world.
Acadia Alumni Distinguished Alumni Award
The Acadia Alumni Distinguished Alumni Award recognizes the outstanding achievements of an Acadia University alum whose endeavours have distinguished them professionally or in the community and brought honour to the University. This award is intended to honour senior alumni with greater than 10 years post-graduation from Acadia.
To see a full list of Distinguished Alumni, please click here.
Nomination deadline: October 31 annually. Click here for a Nomination Form.
Acadia Alumni Outstanding Young Alumni Award
The Acadia Alumni Outstanding Young Alumni Award recognizes the outstanding achievements of an Acadia University alum whose endeavours have distinguished them professionally or in the community and brought honour to the University. This award is intended to honour Graduates of the Last Decade (GOLD).
To see a full list of Outstanding Young Alumni, please click here.
Nomination deadline: July 31 annually. Click here for a Nomination Form.
Acadia Alumni Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching
The Acadia Alumni Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching recognizes a continued record of excellence in teaching students and future alumni of Acadia University with a focus on the faculty member’s professional and teaching accomplishments. Candidates for this award must be current full-time, part-time or contract members of the teaching faculty and have taught at Acadia University for at least three years.
External Nomination deadline: November 30 annually. Click here for a Nomination Form.
Internal Nomination deadline: January 31, annually. Click here for a Nomination Form.
Past recipients include:
2022 Dr. Colin King (2017), Kinesiology
2021 Dr. Juan Carlos López, Biology
2020 Dr. Ian Spooner, Earth & Environmental Science
2019 Dr. Jennifer MacDonald, History and Classics
2018 Dr. Michelle Boyd, School of Music
2017 Professor Ann Dodge, School of Recreation Management and Kinesiology
2016 Dr. Randy Newman, Department of Psychology
2009 Dr. Stephen Ash, F. C. Manning School of Business
2008 Dr. Brenda Robertson, School of Recreation Management and Kinesiology
2007 Dr. Gregory MacKinnon, School of Education
2006 Dr. Stephen Maitzen, Department of Philosophy
2004 Dr. Peter Williams, Physics Department
2000 Dr. Frederick H. Chipman (1961) Math and Stats Department
1998 Dr. Jeanette Auger, Sociology Department
1997 Dr. Mervin Chen, Sociology Department
1996 Dr. Thomasz Muldner, Computer Science
1995 Dr. Merritt A. Gibson (1951) Biology Department
1994 Dr. Stanley Fisher, School of Music
1993 Dr. Gary Ness, Recreation and Physical Activity
1992 Dr. Gwen Davies, English Department
1991 Dr. Maurice Tugwell, Economics Department
1990 Professor Edward Eagles, English Department
1989 Dr. Sandra Barr, Geology Department
1988 Dr. James Stokesbury (1960) History Department
1987 Dr. J. Sherman Bleakney (1949) Biology Department
1986 Dr. Charles Taylor (1951) Acadia Divinity College
Acadia Alumni Isaac Chipman Award for Excellence in Alumni Service
The Acadia Alumni Isaac Chipman Award for Excellence in Alumni Service recognizes an alum of Acadia University who has had a significant positive impact on Acadia and its alumni. The award focuses on a recipient who has provided consistent support in the form of time, effort and resources to the services and promotion of the advancement of the University and its alumni.
Nomination deadline: May 31 annually. Click here for a Nomination Form.
Bostonian Tony Cicerone named 2021 Isaac Chipman Award for Excellence in Alumni Service recipient
Dr. Cicerone (left) with Ian Murray ('88) at an Alumni event.
The Acadia Alumni Association is proud to announce that Dr. Anthony ‘Tony’ Cicerone (’68) is the 2021 recipient of the Acadia Alumni Isaac Chipman Award for Excellence in Alumni Service.
For more than 50 years, Tony Cicerone has had a significant positive impact on Acadia and its alumni in the Boston area. His effort has been consistent in the form of time, energy and resources to the services and promotion of the advancement of the University and its alumni.
Through the decades, Tony has volunteered for Acadia in multiple ways, most recently organizing Italian-style Alumni Family Dinners in Boston's north end prior to the pandemic and as a key proponent in getting Peter MacKay (’87) positioned as the keynote speaker at a joint Acadia-New England Canada Business Council Luncheon held on historic Beacon Street in March 2019.
Acadia Alumni Association President Donalda MacBeath (’75) applauded the selection, noting that “Tony Cicerone’s dedication and commitment to Acadia is a shining example of the kind of alumni engagement we encourage and support through our Association. His unwavering enthusiasm for all things Acadia within his sphere of influence and beyond has kept us connected to our alumni in the New England area and promoted the University to countless prospective and current students, business professionals, colleagues and members of our alumni family for decades. I’m delighted that he has been chosen to receive this award that acknowledges his long and excellent service to Acadia and our alumni community.”
Tony has put together countless alumni gatherings in the past and, as a long-standing member of and contributor to the New England Canada Business Council (NECBC), has kept Acadia connected to Canada’s Counsel General in New England and to various activities in the Boston area. The mission of NECBC is to advance the understanding of business, political and cultural issues between Canada and the United States and to promote the entrepreneurial networking of its members. Tony has arranged for Acadia alumni to be guest speakers on many occasions.
Tony served on Acadia's US Foundation for many years and was reappointed recently to the current iteration of the Foundation. As well, he has been an ardent supporter of New England-focused student recruitment initiatives in the past. Tony never misses a hockey or basketball game when Acadia athletic teams are playing an exhibition contest in the Boston area, often acting as the instigator to get other Acadia alumni out for the evening.
Semi-retired now, Tony was Director of the Canadian Studies Program (taking the helm in 1989) and Professor of Economics at Bridgewater State University. At present, he works on 'special projects' for the Office of the College President. Tony completed both his master’s and PhD in economics from Northeastern University.
Brian Heaney (’69) is a classmate, friend, Distinguished Alumni Award recipient and former Director of Athletics at Acadia from 2007-10. “One thing I remember about Tony during his years as a student and classmate at Acadia was that he was always engaged academically,” Heaney says. “He had many mentors from the faculty of business, most notably the late Ralph Winter, who became a special friend of Tony and (his wife) Kathy (’68) for years after they graduated from Acadia. The model faculty at Acadia inspired Tony to complete his PhD and devote his life and energy as an educator par excellence who almost annually returned to Acadia to renew his friendships and memories throughout his lifetime.”
Acadia’s Executive Director to the President, Ian Murray (’88), noted in a letter supporting Cicerone’s nomination that “Tony’s love of Acadia is palpable. Given his years of service, and the breadth of activities and responsibilities he has undertaken, recognizing Tony with the Chipman Award as an expression of pride and appreciation for his outstanding contributions would be a wonderful tribute.”
Geoff Irvine named 2020 recipient of Isaac Chipman Award for Excellence in Alumni Service
The Acadia Alumni Association is proud to announce that Geoff Irvine (’87) is this year’s recipient of the Acadia Alumni Isaac Chipman Award for Excellence in Alumni Service.
Geoff has been a friend of Acadia for more than 30 years, serving on Student Council and Frosh Committee as an undergraduate; as Executive Director of Alumni Affairs from 2006-09; as a member of Acadia’s Board of Governors twice (in 2005-06 and 2016-19); and on the Associated Alumni of Acadia University (now Acadia Alumni Association) Board in several capacities, including Vice-President and President (2016-18).
He has always been a champion of the alumni community in good times and bad, persistently encouraging mutual respect and collegiality and never losing sight of the value that alumni bring to Acadia through their shared experience, storytelling capacity, fundraising ability and overall affection for and affinity to the institution.
President of the Acadia Alumni Association, Donalda MacBeath (’75), has known Geoff for many years and values his commitment to the University and the Alumni Association.
“Geoff is a fine example of what volunteerism should be,” she says. “You don’t have to spend a lot of time with him to know how passionate he is about Acadia and how important alumni are to the University’s success, now and in the future. He has cultivated relationships, recruited students, established key protocols that govern our executive actions today, and his long history of service exemplifies his dedication to sustaining the Acadia experience for prospective students who will one day graduate and become part of the Acadia alumni family.”
“I’m honoured to receive this award named after such a significant Acadia alumnus,” Irvine says. “I have been blessed to be able to benefit from the unique educational and personal growth experiences offered by Acadia and made lifelong friends both as a student and then many years later as a leader in the alumni community. I strongly urge all alumni to get involved with Acadia in any way you can, including mentoring and recruiting students, attending events or making a monthly donation to a program of interest. The mental drift back to our halcyon days in Wolfville is a tonic!”
The Acadia Alumni Isaac Chipman Award for Excellence in Alumni Service recognizes a graduate of Acadia University who has had a significant positive impact on Acadia and its alumni. The award focuses on a recipient who has provided consistent support in the form of time, effort and resources to the services and promotion of the advancement of the University and its alumni.
Beverley Richardson ('60)
Beverley (Trites) Richardson, a member of the Class of 1960, studied secretarial science with a music minor. She was involved in the Acadia Choral Society, Acadia Orchestra (violin), NFCUS, SCM, PC Party, cheerleading, and served as a monitor for Horton Academy girls in Seminary. Beverley entered and graduated from Victoria General Hospital in Halifax from the three-year nursing program then married Dick Currie, whom she met on the Acadia basketball court. The couple has three daughters and eight grandchildren. Beverley nursed private duty for cancer patients in Saint John, N.B., where she was involved with Acadia Alumni (1962-1968). The couple moved to Boston when Dick attended Harvard Business School, and opened a premature nursery at the Cambridge Hospital. Years later, Beverley and her family settled in Toronto, where she continued to be involved with Acadia Alumni. She was involved also with volunteer work at her girls’ school, grief and bereavement counseling at her church, and fundraising events. Beverley helped take the Timothy Eaton Memorial Church Choir to England and Scotland, arranging all venues and accommodations prior to the trip. She was the Editor for Crafts for J.A.M. magazine for young people for three years. Beverley traveled extensively, enjoying many Pro-Am golf tournaments along the way. In 1988, she married Acadia grad Grant Richardson, moving to Truro, where he taught Physics and Math. Grant took a year study leave in England, returning to Truro, and set up a 4.5 star Bed and Breakfast (The Silver Firs) which operated for nine years. Special guests included Prime Minister Kim Campbell, a Four-Star General, Vienna String Quartet, and more. In addition, the company catered to wedding parties. Beverley worked on many church boards and the Colchester Hospital Foundation. In 2000, Beverley moved to Wolfville. Her hobbies include gardening, reading, needlework, and painting in watercolour and acrylics. Beverley has been busy for the past four years organizing “Friends of Lucas” as a financial support system for pianist Lucas Porter. She keeps busy on the Board of Landmark East and the Valley Regional (Hospice) Foundation as well as involved in Wolfville Baptist Church organizations. She is presently the President of the Social and Benevolent Society, which organizes and prepares for all church receptions, teas and dinners, including the Divinity College.
The Athenaeum and Acadia Alumni Student of the Year Award
Created in 1981, The Athenaeum and Acadia Alumni Student of the Year Award recognizes a student who has excelled at Acadia and embodies the Acadia spirit. The award is presented annually to a nominee who has contributed to the Acadia and Wolfville communities through extracurricular and/or academic activities and has worked to further the Acadia spirit. Nominees must be full-time students. Preference will be given to students who will be graduating in May of the current academic year.
Nomination deadline: March 31 annually. Click here for a Nomination Form.
Past recipients include:
2022 Sarah Lavallée
2021 Guy Harrison-Murray
2020 Liam Maaskant
2019 Samantha Teichman and Ruvimbo Chipazi
2018 Emily Murray
2017 Katie Ross
2016 Todd Dow
2015 Kenzie MacNeil
2014 Darcy Shea
2013 Lindsay Harris
2012 William Roberts
2011 Christina Muehlberger
2010 Leslie Lewis
2009 Rhys Kavanagh
2008 Alex Redfield and Hillary Barter
2007 Jordan M. Sheriko
2006 Megan Margaret Jean Burns
2005 Melissa Ann Brockerville
2004 Adam Armstrong
2003 Hannah-Ruth Feldberg
2002 Laura Elizabeth Saunders
2001 Meghann Clare Lloyd
2000 Paul F. BLack
1999 Tracy K. Antle
1998 David V. Wright
1997 Karen Lynnette Hood
1996 Jason G. Williams
1995 Thomas M. Hamza
1994 Stephen S. S. Lee
1993 Michele Hilton
1992 Robert G. Reeves
1991 Maureen J. MacDonald
1990 Pamela J. Butler
1989 Clive V. Anderson
1988 Sara Lynn Porter
1987 Stephen J. Smith
1986 Frances L. Peck
1985 Edgar P. Spalding
1984 James K. Cruickshank
1983 Brad Yuill and Martha Grandmont
1982 Alan R. Dennis
1981 Eleanor Borden Crowell
Acadia Alumni Outstanding University Service Award
The Acadia Alumni Outstanding University Service Award is presented in recognition of a staff member who has had a significant positive impact on Acadia, its students and its alumni. The award is an expression of the Alumni Association’s appreciation for an outstanding staff member who has contributed above and beyond job requirements to ensure that Acadia provides an environment that encourages academic, athletic, cultural, organizational and social development. Of greatest importance is the person's ability to foster an environment in which students and/or members of the Acadia community thrive.
Nomination deadline: April 30 annually. Click here for a Nomination Form.
Kim Vaughan named Acadia Alumni Outstanding University Service Award winner
Kim Vaughan is the Administrative Coordinator for Acadia’s School of Kinesiology and the Centre of Lifestyle Studies. She has a keen eye for detail and her knowledge of University policies and procedures is expansive and impressive. Small wonder she is often described as a driving force behind what happens in the School of Kinesiology.
Kim joined the School of Recreation Management and Kinesiology in 2003 and has been a mainstay there ever since, going above and beyond in every aspect of her role to ensure that faculty, staff, students and alumni are informed, cared for and respected. She gives freely of her time and talent, bakes cookies for students, decorates the lobby at Christmas, and routinely drops everything to help anyone in need. She is an exemplar of what an admin coordinator should be: capable, organized, principled, determined, and always on top of things.
For these and a host of other reasons, the Acadia Alumni Association is pleased to announce that Kim Vaughan is the 2022 Acadia Alumni Association Outstanding University Service Award recipient.
Alumni Association President Matt Rios (’14) says, “Kim epitomizes the term ‘university service’. Her commitment to the many facets of her job have endeared her to the Acadia community, and her incredible dedication to the students she has influenced over the years has added tremendous capacity, insight and compassion to our alumni community. I offer hearty and sincere congratulations, and am delighted to recognize and applaud her remarkable achievements with this year’s Acadia Alumni Association Outstanding University Service Award.”
Kim’s contributions are not confined to the Acadia campus. She continues to have a significant civic impact as the Parker District Co-Commissioner for the Girl Guides of Canada and Contact Guider for the Kentville Brownies and Rangers, among other roles. She has also planned fundraisers for Chrysalis House, which provides a safe and non-judgmental shelter and outreach services for women and children; testicular cancer; blood drives; and has been instrumental in most of the School of Kinesiology’s service-learning programs, including the cardiac maintenance program, Kinderskills, Sensory Motor Instructional Leadership Experience (S.M.I.L.E.) program, Acadia Active Aging program, and the Hannah Miller Memorial hockey tournament.
Acadia grad Megan Beliveau (’14) says, “Kim embodies service leadership in the many roles she finds herself. Through all these roles she goes above and beyond the expectations, doing so with a clear motivation to support the success of others.”
Kim sets a high standard for those around her, supporting and elevating everyone to new and previously unimagined heights. Her dedication to the goals of the University and her colleagues is unparalleled, and why she is the 2022 Acadia Alumni Association Outstanding University Service Award recipient.
2021 Jennifer Veinot
2020 Cheryl MacDonald
2019 Eric Cederberg
2008 Pat McNutt
2007 James Sanford
2006 Elaine Schofield
2004 Safety and Security Department
2000 Carolyn Bowlby, Kaye Burke, Millard Cherry, Edith Hicking, Don Mosher, Ernie Hovell, Al Whittle
1999 Staff of Physical Plant – Past and Present
1998 Don Wells
1997 Vincent Leung
1996 John Mercer
1995 Mary Miles
Acadia Sports Hall of Fame
The purpose of the Acadia Sports Hall of Fame is to recognize those individuals who have made a significant contribution to the athletic program at Acadia University and who, as a result of their contribution, have enhanced the image and reputation of the University. The Acadia Sports Hall of Fame is administered by the Office of Alumni Affairs and the Department of Athletics.
For more, please visit: http://acadiahof.ca/
Contact
Office of Alumni Affairs
Wu Welcome Centre @ Alumni Hall
512 Main Street
Wolfville, NS B4P 2R6, Canada
Alumni Inquiries: 902.585.1459
Toll free in North America:
1.866.ACADIAU (1.866.222.3428)
Alumni Fax: 902.585.1069
acadia.alumni@acadiau.ca