The John Wesley Leadership Award recognizes outstanding undergraduate students, faculty and staff each spring. More information is available about the history of the Wesley award here. These awards are approved by the ASAC Committee of the Board of Trustees and presented at Commencement.
You can see prior recipients here.
2024 Student Recipients
Mohamed Shukri (he/his) is from St. Cloud, Minnesota and will graduate in the spring from the College of Liberal Arts with a Bachelor of Arts in Global Studies and minors in Legal Studies and Political Science. Mohamed has been involved as a student ambassador in the admissions office, HUSC representative and BER Chair, resident assistant, congressional intern and a summer fellow in the institute for nonprofit practice.
Mohamed had multiple nominations. Two excerpts from his nomination letters include: “Mohamed is the embodiment of the qualities of a true Piper, demonstrating a love for learning, a commitment to civic engagement, and a strong desire to make a difference in the world. His dedication to marginalized students and interest in foreign affairs make him an exemplary candidate for the John Wesley Leadership and Service Award”; “(I) have come to know Mohamed as a diligent, creative, caring, and engaging leader who is capable of making extraordinary connections with the people he comes in contact with. He lives out the words of John Wesley every single day”.
Jennifer Martinez-Badillo (she/her) is from Bloomington, Minnesota and will graduate this spring from the College of Liberal Arts with a Bachelor of Arts in Global Studies and minors in Education and Psychology. Jennifer has been involved as a resident assistant, student coordinator in the center for justice and law and food resource center, HUSC representative, state service for the blind peer educator, College Possible and many student organizations.
Jennifer’s nominator wrote, “Jennifer has positively impacted the Hamline community not only through her work in the Food Resource Center, but also by her position as an RA on the Global Pipers floor, a board member for APAC, previous roles in HU (formerly HALO), a HUSC Representative, a student worker for the CJL, a National Institute for Food and Agriculture Fellow, a Spectrum board member, and so much more. Jennifer is not only involved on campus to get to know her community, but she truly continues to change the Hamline community for the better throughout her time here. I have no doubt that Jennifer is going to continue to do amazing things to make Hamline a safe, inclusive, and passionate environment”.
Fatuma Mohamed (she/her) is from Jordan, Minnesota and will graduate this spring from the Hamline School of Business with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree. Fatuma has been involved as a leader in the Muslim student association, piper investment club, women boss up and the career mentorship program. She is also a patient care assistant with Wise home health care and a digital product creator.
Fatuma was nominated by a fellow student who wrote, “What sets Fatuma apart is her commitment to supporting underclassmen and creating a welcoming environment for new students. I personally experienced her kindness and guidance when I first started getting involved on campus. Fatuma effortlessly connected me to a network of students who are now my close peers….Fatuma actively volunteers with the Wesley center, contributing her time and effort to events such as the campus-wide Iftar night and a collaborative movie night with the Jewish Student Life. Her dedication to interfaith collaboration shows how significant fostering understanding and unity among diverse groups on campus is to Fatuma. Having gotten to know Fatuma over these last two years I am pleased to say that she is an exceptional person who exemplifies the spirit of John Wesley's words. Her leadership, kindness, and commitment to community-building make me feel confident that Fatuma will continue to make a positive impact wherever she goes”.
Faculty and Staff Recipients
Dr. Erik Asp is a professor of Psychology who began at Hamline in 2015 and tenured and promoted to Associate Professor in 2021. Currently he serves as the Director of the Wesley and Lorene Artz Cognitive Neuroscience Research Center.
Dr. Asp was nominated by one of his students who wrote that “he truly cares about his students. Dr. Asp knows how to push students out of their comfort zone in order to reach the next level of skills and knowledge in neuroscience and psychology…He provides a nurturing space where students feel safe to engage and risk being wrong sometimes knowing they will only grow from the experience…I am grateful to have had Dr. Asp as a professor, mentor, and advisor. These relationships allowed me to learn about summer research internships and lab opportunities. I reached out to him for support and guidance on how to join a lab and he was very receptive. I was able to meet with Dr. Asp to talk about his lab and potentially joining as a member. These interactions show that he wants the best for his students which he demonstrates by sharing information on internships, lab openings, and opportunities in the workforce after Hamline. I also was supported by Dr. Asp while applying to and preparing materials for a summer lab research internship and graduate programs for neuroscience. Without a mentor instilling confidence in me to strive for my dreams while continuing my education I would have never gotten into the summer internship let alone a neuroscience graduate program, as I just recently have. He provides students opportunities to become teacher assistants and tutors which is a wonderful chance to explore the idea of pursuing a career in academia. Dr. Asp stays in tune with his students and teacher assistants. He always checks in and communicates very well.
Dr. Irina Makarevitch joined Hamline in 2005 as a Biology professor. She has held the additional roles of Chair of both the Mathematics and BIology departments, administrative head for life, mind and health sciences and currently serves as the associate provost for accreditation and compliance since 2022.
Dr. Makarevitch was nominated by faculty in the biology department who wrote that “throughout her years at Hamline, Irina has served in multiple roles and has excelled at them all. She is an exceptionally trained scientist and productive researcher who can teach almost any course in biology…As a faculty member, she was one of the first instructors on campus to implement student-centered pedagogies in her classroom to make biology courses more inclusive and accessible to students of all backgrounds and academic abilities." Irina carried her commitment to inclusive teaching into her leadership role as the Chair of the Biology Department. She led a pedagogical transformation in Biology that resulted in a complete revision of our program curriculum to ensure that all biology courses implemented high-impact pedagogy practices to enhance student learning and retain diverse student populations in STEM. Through her leadership, the Hamline Biology Department was awarded a “Gold” rating by the Partnership for Undergraduate Life Science Education (PULSE). This national recognition indicates that our department has made significant progress toward implementing inclusive student-centered pedagogies, as recommended by the Vision and Change in STEM Education Initiative.
While the Biology Department was sad to lose our daily interactions with Irina, we were also elated that she could take her vision and leadership campus-wide when she became Associate Provost. In this role, she has taken on multiple leadership roles that positively impact our community and has been consistently committed to faculty growth that supports high impact learning opportunities for our students across the curriculum”.
“Beyond all of her accomplishments, as a colleague and community member, Irina is one of the most helpful and compassionate individuals on campus. She continually celebrates and amplifies the successes of her colleagues…Her work as a professor, researcher, and administrator clearly illustrates her commitment and dedication to Hamline’s mission and core values”.
Anthony Schroeder (he/his) has been a part of the Hamline community for the past 32 years. First as a student and student employee and then later as a full time staff member. Anthony is an alum with a BA in economics and has worked for Hamline for almost 26 years. For the past 8 years, Anthony has been the Director of Infrastructure systems and services
Anthony’s nominator wrote, “Anthony Schroeder is a Hamline alumni with the core values of Hamline University, "doing all the good we can, in all the ways we can" Anthony demonstrates this everyday as he is willing to help anyone out at any time given his busy schedule. Anthony works countless hours to make sure the ITS department is running smoothly and if there is a problem on campus outside of regular hours Anthony is always there to help out. Years ago, Anthony also was a student worker of mine and I have watched him grow into a thoughtful leader not only in the ITS department but the campus in general…Anthony sees all sides to every situation, Anthony still has the youthful spirit of an undergrad student and is always thinking of the students first, Hamline second and lastly himself….He is a genuine person with a heart of gold!! Words cannot say enough about Anthony's dedication to Hamline! As a bit of trivia, Anthony met his wife working at Hamline and his daughter is presently attending Hamline. Anthony BLEEDS Hamline!!!”
His supervisor wrote, “Anthony demonstrates a strong commitment to his alma mater. Nearly all activities within his scope support the foundation for students, faculty, and staff to accomplish their work. He is respected by me, his ITS co-workers, and members of the university community with whom he comes in contact for his dedication to providing responsive service. He is easily approachable and makes himself as available as he can reasonably be to anyone who seeks him out. Anthony consistently contributes when his assistance, advice, or guidance is sought. He does so with practicality, cheerfulness, equanimity, and poise.”
