Council of Fellows Mentor Award

 

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​The Council of Fellows Mentor Award recognizes ACE member presidents’ and chancellors’ contributions to enhancing the diversity and capacity of future leaders of American higher education.

 

2026 Winner

Joan Gabel, University of Pittsburgh
 
Read the press release

Past Award Recipients​

ACE has been bestowing the Council of Fellows Mentor Award since 2005, when Robert L. Carothers and David P. Roselle became the first ever recipients. Click to expand the area below to learn more about our past recipients.

2025 - Richard J. Helldobler, William Paterson University

2024 - Waded Cruzado, Montana State University

2023 - Kim A. Wilcox, University of California, Riverside

2022 - Joe Bertolino, Southern Connecticut State University

2021 - Jonathan R. Alger, James Madison University

2020 - Philip L. Dubois​, University of North Carolina at Charlotte​​

2019 - Stanley C. Preczewski, Georgia Gwinett College

2018 - Renu Khator, University of Houston

2017 - Earl H. Potter (Posthumously), St. Cloud State University

2016 - John T. Casteen, III, University of Virginia

2015 - Dennis Holtschneider, DePaul University (IL)

2014 - Freeman A. Hrabowski, III, University of Maryland Baltimore County

2013 - E. Gordon Gee, The Ohio State University

2012 - John Cavanaugh, Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area

2011 - Robert Caret, University of Massachusetts

2010 - Marvalene Hughes, Dillard University (LA)

2010 - Stephen Joel Trachtenberg, George Washington University (DC)

2009 - Robert E. Hemenway, University of Kansas

2008 - Robert Glidden, Ohio University

2007 - Carol A. Cartwright, Kent State University (OH)

2006 - Jerry Sue Thornton, Cuyahoga Community College (OH)

2005 - Robert L. Carothers, University of Rhode Island

2005 - David P. Roselle, University of Delaware​

 

​2027 Council of Fellows Mentor Award Nomination Application

Thank you for your interest in the Council of Fellows Mentor Award nomination. The award will be presented during the Council of Fellows Networking Event in Washington, DC, on March 4–5, 2027.

The Council of Fellows Mentor Award specifically recognizes the contributions of ACE member presidents and chancellors in nurturing future leaders for higher education. The award highlights their role in preparing leaders to address the evolving landscape of colleges and universities. The award recipient’s institution will receive a $5,000 monetary prize, contingent upon the availability of funding.

The award is presented annually by the Council of Fellows from all for​mer ACE Fellows to acknowledge the substantial role of mentors in ACE Fellows Program participants’ success.

Nomin​ations are due no later than 11:59 p.m. ET on Tuesday, October 13, 2026. For questions regarding eligible candidates or any other questions, please contact ACE at aceconnect@acenet.edu​.​​​​​​​​​

Below is a list of all eligible for the Mentor Award. ​If you wish to nominate someone who is not on this list, please contact aceconnect@acenet.edu​.​

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Presidential Candidates

Charles Bantz

Thomas Botzman​

Nancy Cantor

Jared Cohon

Michael Crow

Judy Genshaft

Zachary Hodges

William English Kirwan

Francis Lazarus

Dorothy Leland

Chuck Middleton

James Moeser

Melvyn D. Schiavelli

Peter Salovey

Donna Shalala

Leslie Wong

William Woodson​

Sage Candidates

Patricia Arredondo

Mary-Linda Armacost​

Jacquelyn M. Belcher

Ronald L. Carter

Robert L. Carothers

David J. Fulton

Maria Gallo

Marsha V. Krotseng

Deborah Lieberman

Theodora J. Kalikow

Charles “Chuck" Middleton

M. Valeriana Moeller

Carol A. Moore

Miguel Nevárez

Ruth J. Person

Sara Jayne Steen

Michael Thomson

Peggy R. Williams

​​Dorothy Cowser Yancy​​​

 
 
Nominations​

Applications are open for the ACE Council of Fellows Mentor Award.

The deadline to submit nominations is October 13, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. ET.

The award will be​ presented during the ACE Council of Fellows Networking Event​ in Washington, DC, ​​on March 4, 2027.​

Nominate​

Nomination Criteria

To be eligible for consideration, a nominee must:

  • Be a president or chancellor (or a recently retired president or chancellor) of an ACE​ member institution;
  • Have served as mentor to three or more ACE Fellows;​​
    • ​​​​​Mentor is defined as an individual who has supported through mentoring an ACE Fellow as a nomin​ator, host campus mentor, and/or ​post-fellowship Sage​
  • Be nominated by a former Fellow; and
  • Have at least one additional supporting letter for the nomination from another Fellow mentored by the nominee.

Nominations for this award are not open for public submission. ​