Trustee Awards

Call For 2023 Nominations

Nominations are being accepted for the Community Partnership Award, Leo E. Morton Community Service Award, and the Vision Forward Award. The nomination deadline is Friday, March 31 by 5 pm. For more information, contact Joe Constantino at constantinoj@umkc.edu.

UMKC Trustees Community Engagement Awards

Partnerships are key to the success of the university, so we celebrate outstanding engagement initiatives that strengthen the relationship between the community and UMKC. Collaborations are happening every day, and some of them need to be recognized for their impact and for being partnership models for other communities.

Not only can a community organization make a positive impact on the university, but the university can also make the city and region a better place to live. As a group of business and civic leaders, the Trustees are deeply aware of how important this work can be.

These awards are given to a program and/or project developed in collaboration by individuals at the university or in the community that helps further the goals of both organizations.

Community Partnership Award

The Community Partnership Award recognizes a business or organization that contributes to the university through programs and or projects that help the university live up to its urban-serving mission of education and research.

Evergy has demonstrated strong support for UMKC and the School of Computing and Engineering (SCE). They provide direct support for scholarships and other fundraising priorities, such as the $500,000 pledge for the “Evergy Renewable Energy Lab and Roof Deck” in the new Plaster Free Enterprise and Research Center. Last year, the SCE received a new five-year pledge to continue the annual $50,000 Evergy Scholarship. The company also supports the KC STEM Alliance, which is a K-12 STEM outreach initiative housed within SCE.

Truman Medical Centers has long been a critical partner of UMKC, but their response to COVID went above and beyond expectations. Here are some highlights: A mobile COVID testing unit went out into the community; a mobile market provided fresh produce to those homebound due to the pandemic, doctors went on the road to educate people about masks; a Faith Community Town Hall was offered entirely in Spanish; a partnership with the KCATA and the KC Housing Authority transported residents to their onsite clinic.

Year	Recipients
2021	Evergy Truman Medical Centers
2019	Burns & McDonnell
2017	Beacon Hill Developers LLC
2016	UMKC Alumni Association
2015	Bernstein-Rein Advertising
2014	City of Kansas City, Missouri

Leo E. Morton Community Service Award

The Community Service Award recognizes university – academic units, departments, programs and services – contributions to the community through innovative services, programs, and or projects that strengthen the relationship between the university and the community, ensuring that UMKC remains embedded in the fabric of the community.

Dr. Cameron Lindsey is chair of the Division of Pharmacy Practice and Administration at UMKC. During the COVID pandemic, she leveraged her community and professional relationships and became authorized to provide vaccines at the university. For several months, she held weekly clinics – leveraging the skills of School of Medicine students to fight the pandemic. She also partnered with Truman Medical Center and other organizations to staff community vaccination events. In total, over 3,000 shots have been given because of her efforts.

Year	Recipients
2021	Law School Child & Family Law Program Dr. Cameron Lindsey (School of Pharmacy)
2019	Tony Luppino (School of Law)
2017	UMKC School of Dentistry
2016	UMKC Architecture, Urban Planning + Design
2015	KC STEM Alliance
2014	KCSourceLink

The Child and Family Services Clinic provides free legal services for those who need help obtaining custody orders for children who have a history of being abused or neglected. Seeking an Order of Protection is time consuming and challenging, and when COVID shut down courthouses in spring 2020, the problem became more acute. Using federal COVID-19 grant funding, the Kansas Office of Judicial Administration, contracted with the Law School to develop an online protection order portal which is now in place across the state of Kansas.

Vision Forward Award

The Vision Forward Award recognizes a new or emerging initiative that demonstrates the spirit of discovery and innovation with promising outcomes that enhance the quality of life in Kansas City and/or supports the university’s urban-serving mission. Awardees can either be a single entity or a partnership. The initiative must have been launched within 24 months of the current call for nominations.

Scholar of the Year Award

Maria Gentry was awarded the inaugural UMKC Trustees Scholar of the Year Award. She was selected by her peers in the Trustee’s Scholars Program. In her nomination, she was cited for her dedication to her studies, the scholars program and to service in the Kansas City community. Maria serves as chair of the Trustees’ Scholars Community Service Committee. She is a great reflection of the values and skills that the program strives to instill in all scholars.

Henry W. Bloch Trustee Excellence Award

The purpose of the award is to inspire excellence and commitment on the part of all UMKC trustees by periodically recognizing long-term, in-depth service to both UMKC and the UMKC Board of Trustees. The accolade is unique in that it is not awarded annually. Rather, it is bestowed as deemed appropriate by the trustees.

This prestigious honor has only been awarded four times.

• Warren Erdman (2019)
• Doranne Hudson (2016)
• Hugh J. Zimmer (2014)
• Henry Bloch (at its inception in 2011)

Get More Information

Joe Constantino, Director of External Relations
External Relations and Constituent Engagement
Administrative Center – AC 315B
5115 Oak St.
Kansas City, MO 64112
(816) 235-5201
constantinoj@umkc.edu