The John Hope Award
The John Hope Award, co-sponsored by the Brown Alumni Association and the Swearer Center for Public Service, is named for the 1894 African-American alumnus who dedicated his life to education and community service. With this award, the BAA honors a graduate whose commitment to public service exemplifies leadership, innovation, and a direct impact on the community. The honoree may be a professional whose career is dedicated to public service or a volunteer devoted to public service or social action.
Special note: From 2003 – 2005, due to the extraordinarily high quality of nomination of very young alumni for this award, the John Hope Award selection committee also recognized a number of these nominees with the Young Alumni Service Award. Their names are included in the list below with the designation “YASA”.
Nominate a recipient for 2010
2009 Recipient:
Donald W. King ’93
Founder and artistic director of the Providence Black Repertory Company and consultant for the ArtsLit Project
Previous Award Recipients:
(Click on a name for more information on the recipient.)
- John Bonifaz ’87, founder and director of National Voting Rights Institute
- Sheryl Brissett-Chapman ’71, executive director of the National Center for Children and Families
- Thomas J. Brown ’50, advocate for Boston low-income housing development
- Edward E. Cornwell III ’78, chief of trauma at the John Hopkins Hospital; president of both the Society of Black Academic Surgeons and the National Medical Association
- Derek Ellerman ’02 and Katherine Chon ’02, founders of the Polaris Project
- Earle W. Fisher ’42, volunteer nurse caring for AIDS infants
- Paul G. Heck ’89, founder and director of the Red Hot Organization
- Jeffrey R. Keitelman ’82, founder of Greater D.C. Cares; continued public service
- Peter A. Kovacs ’78, Stephanie L. Grace ’87 and Mary K. Swerczek ’98, New Orleans Times-Picayune editor and staff writers performing multi-faceted coverage of Hurricane Katrina under extreme circumstances
- George Lima ’48, one of World War II’s famous Tuskegee Airmen, a lifelong activist and public servant
- Marcia Loebenstein McBeath ’45, Peace Corps volunteer
- Mary Louise Hinckley Record ’37, lifelong hospital volunteer
- David E. Saltzman ’84, founder and executive director of the Robin Hood Foundation
- Jeffrey Swartz ’82, CEO of Timberland; advocate and financial supporter of City Year
- Bryant Toth MD ’76, co-founder of the Indo China Surgical Exchange in Vietname
- Patricia Walker Walsh ’65, founder, Truancy Intervention Project and Kids In Need of Dreams>
- W. Terence Walsh ’65, founder, Best Girls Club at Capitol Area Ministries
- Khary Lazarre-White ’95 and Jason Warwin ’95 (YASA), co-founders of The Brotherhood/SisterSol