Award of Excellence
The Alumni Award of Excellence recognizes CEHD alumni who have demonstrated outstanding achievement and leadership in their profession, served as mentors to others in their field, or shown exceptional volunteer service.
Award recipients will be honored at the CEHD Exceptional Alumni Awards Celebration on Thursday, April 30 at McNamara Alumni Center.
If you have any questions, please contact us at cehdas@umn.edu or 612-625-5963.
Congratulations to the 2026 Alumni Award of Excellence recipients
Aaron Kelly (PhD ’04, kinesiology)
Dr. Aaron Kelly is a Professor of Pediatrics, the Minnesota American Legion Chair in Children’s Health, and the Co-Founder and Co-Director of the Center for Pediatric Obesity Medicine at the University of Minnesota Medical School. As a physiologist and clinical trialist, he has more than 20 years of experience conducting intervention studies for the treatment of pediatric/adolescent obesity and has published more than 190 peer-reviewed papers on this and related topics.
Lee-Ann Stephens (BS ’89, elementary education, MEd ’97, curriculum & instruction)
Dr. Lee-Ann Stephens has been an educator for over 30 years with kindergarten – 12th grade teaching and leadership experience. Dr. Stephens is currently a Grade 3 Teacher at Aquila Elementary in Saint Louis Park Schools. She is an affiliate with Pacific Educational Group: Courageous Conversations about Race, serves on the Governance Board of Lutheran Social Services and has been appointed by Governor Walz to the Education Commission of the States, a partner with education policy leaders to address issues by sharing resources and expertise.
Past alumni award of excellence recipients:
- 2025: Patricia K. Kubow and Brian Lozenski
- 2024: Amanda Harrington and Juleen Rodakowski
- 2023: Larry Johnson and Kristin J. Morris
- 2022: Ashley Landers and Abdul Omari
- 2021: Juliana Carlson and K. Giddings
- 2019: Chelsea Petree
- 2018: Candice Nadler and Catherine Rich
- 2017: Beth Bowman and Karen Filla
- 2015: Kenneth Dragseth, Amelia Franck Meyer
- 2014: Kenneth Mauer, Barbara Schmidt
- 2013: Marvin Davis, Peg Lonnquist