2025 Presidential Award Winners Exemplify Scholarship, Service, Teaching, and Mission 

The annual Presidential Awards and Employee Appreciation Ceremony was held in the Tsotsis Family Academic Center Ballroom on November 20. During the ceremony, four faculty and staff members were recognized for their outstanding contributions to the Assumption community.  

“We multiply good by awakening in our students a sense of wonder, discovery, and purpose. We inspire them to make a difference the way each of our honorees has made a difference,” said President Greg Weiner in his opening remarks. “We don’t tell them what difference to make or how to make it, but we equip them with the skills and the knowledge and the habits of heart and mind they need to chart their own paths, and we model for them the traits that we believe distinguish leaders—intellectual seriousness, thoughtful citizenship, and devotion to the common good.” 

“Whether you’re receiving an award today, or here to support your colleagues, I know that all of you exemplify these traits as well,” he continued. “I am grateful for your continued commitment to Assumption, and I know that you’ll join me in celebrating these outstanding individuals and their profound service to the institution we hold so dear.”  

The winners of the Presidential Awards for 2025 are as follows:  

Bernard J. Dobski, Ph.D., Professor of Political Science, received the Paul Ziegler Presidential Award for Excellence in Scholarship.  

“‘I do what I do out of love and hope: love, because in reading, thinking, and writing about the great works of politics, philosophy, and literature that define the Western canon, I engage in that activity which most completely fulfills my nature,’” said Weiner, reading acceptance remarks on behalf of Dobski, who was attending a literature and leadership conference. “‘It is with pride, pride in what our political science department represents and in the work we do as teachers and scholars that I accept this award.’” 

Jessica McCready, Ph.D., Professor of Biology, received the Presidential Award for Service.  

“The best part of serving on many committees is the connection one can make with colleagues outside one’s own department. This fosters a feeling of family and a feeling of belonging at work that we are working on a common goal, to improve Assumption one small committee decision at a time,” said McCready. “In the end, for me, the requirement to serve turned into an opportunity to find happiness in a job that can sometimes be frustrating. Thank you again for honoring me with this award. I am truly grateful to be recognized and thankful to be working with all of you in this special place.” 

John Frederick Bell, Ph.D., Associate Professor of History, has received the Michael O’Shea Presidential Award for Excellence in Teaching.  

“It’s really humbling to receive an award named after Michael O’Shea, who I did not know personally, but who I’ve come to know through the research and the work that some of us are doing putting together [a] campus exhibit. He’s the kind of person—the kind of teacher that I like to be when I grow up. I’m truly honored to receive this award named after him. I wanted to take a moment to thank the elves, or whoever nominated me, as they surely have better things to do with their time,” said Bell. “Most of all, I’d like to thank our students. They are the salt of the earth, and they’re the reason that we’re all here. They asked the outlaw Slick Willie Sutton, ‘why do you rob banks?’ He said, ‘because that’s where the money is.’ Why do we teach? Because it is a privilege to be a force for good in the lives of young people.” 

Christopher P. Klofft, S.T.D., Associate Professor of Theology, has received the Kathleen M. Murphy Presidential Award for Excellence in Contribution to the Mission.  

“I’ve had the opportunity to meet so many students and to share in the mission of this great University until Christ be formed in all of us. It is the case that I want to share the truth with my students, as we all do as faculty, and I’m especially blessed to be able to teach theology, which I do sincerely believe is the most important subject one can study,” Klofft said. “I’m very thankful for the opportunities I’ve had to work with campus ministry all these years, for the yearly journeys down to Washington, D.C. with a group of students. I’m thankful for all those who have nominated me for this award, and I hope to continue to be able to serve this University until Christ be formed in me.”  

Along with these four honorees, faculty and staff were also honored with years of service awards, ranging in five-year increments from five to 40 years of service. One faculty member, Becky DiBiasio, Ph.D., Associate Professor of English, was honored for a remarkable 40 years of service and employment at Assumption University.