Glenn College Celebrates 2025 Graduates and Honors Award Winners at Pre-Commencement Event

This year’s graduating class includes 69 undergraduate students, with 16 earning a Bachelor of Science in Public Policy Analysis and 53 earning a Bachelor of Arts in Public Management, Leadership and Policy. On the graduate side, 66 students completed advanced education, including five certificate recipients, 18 Master of Public Administration and Leadership graduates, five Master of Arts in Public Policy and Management graduates, 37 Master of Public Administration graduates, and one PhD in Public Policy and Management.

In addition to recognizing the graduates, the ceremony highlighted exceptional contributions to the college and broader community through a series of annual awards:

• Mary K. Marvel Outstanding Graduate Teaching Award: Associate Professor David Landsbergen, honored for his excellence in instruction and unwavering support for graduate students.
• Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award: Judith Zimomra, senior lecturer, recognized by students for her engaging teaching and mentorship at the undergraduate level.

• Robert W. Backoff Research Award: Shuai Cao, for his “Policy Studies in China: A Half Century Review (1970s-2020s).”
• Doug N. Jones Research Award: Marialejandra Guzmán Cruz, for “The Competing Impacts of Childcare Regulations: Does Increasing Quality Regulations Lead to Lower Safety Standards?”
• Outstanding Graduate Capstone Award – Individual: Sarah Lentz, for her paper “Representative Bureaucracy in Education: How Race-Gender Congruence Among Teachers and Principals Impacts Teacher Turnover in Ohio Schools.”
• Outstanding Graduate Capstone Award – Group: Delonte' Manley, Ethan Combs and Krystina Zabek, for their client-based project, “Columbus Humane: KPI Indicators.”
• Outstanding Undergraduate Paper Award: Courtney Smith, for her paper “Opioid Use Disorder Treatment: Addressing Barriers to Medication-Assisted Treatment in Ohio.”

• Mary E. Katchmar Outstanding Service Award: Ethan Combs, honored for his selfless service and dedication to supporting others.
• Exemplary Community Service Award: Daniel Téllez Calderón, recognized for impactful volunteer work benefiting the broader community.

• Outstanding Public Service Award: Kevin Reardon, Ohio State Fire Marshal, honored for his distinguished contributions to public safety and public service in the state of Ohio.

As Dean Trevor Brown noted in his closing remarks, “Our graduates are ready to lead. Whether in local government, nonprofit organizations, state agencies or federal policy circles, these students are prepared to follow in Sen. John Glenn’s footsteps — to lead with integrity and to serve with purpose.”

Congratulations to the John Glenn College of Public Affairs Class of 2025 — we can’t wait to see the impact you’ll make.

Aly Murphy, an Ohio State Stamps Eminence Scholar, is the student communications assistant at the Glenn College. She is majoring in political science with minors in agricultural communication and civic engagement.