Career Development Network

Annual Awards

As we all know, CDN is made up of talented and dedicated individuals. The following awards* have been created in order to provide CDN with a mechanism for recognizing individuals or teams for high-caliber achievements and contributions related to career services across our campus. A nominating committee made up of CDN Board officers will solicit and review nominations annually and/or make their own nominations and select recipients**.

* Award titles and descriptions updated on December 2020
** A nomination of an individual or team of individuals does not ensure receipt of the award.

CDN Awards

CDN Visionary Award

Given in recognition of a current or past member of the CDN community for their contributions (over a minimum of 15 years) to the field of career development, with a significant portion of their career at the University of Minnesota. This award is not necessarily given out every year.

Recipient should:

Demonstrate a long-term commitment to student and career development
Make contributions towards direct and/or indirect impact through their work with students, staff, community members, and services
Elevate the vision and value of career development throughout campus and inspires the career growth of individuals

2025 Recipient

Heather Nagle

Past Winners

Heather Nagle (2025)
Lisa Novack (2024)
Liz Hruska (2023)
Maggie Kubak (2022)
Joyce Halverson (2021)*
Paul Timmins,(2019)*
Julie Westlund (2019)*
Sara Nagel Newberg (2018)*
Gary Donovan (2017)*
Jean Underwood (2016)*
Jerry Rinehart (2013)*

*formerly CDN Lifetime Achievement Award

CDN Career Champion Award

This award recognizes a current or past member of the CDN for their contributions (over a minimum of 5 years) in the field of career development at the University of Minnesota.

Recipients should:

Advance the field of career services through active engagement in campus-wide career initiatives and activities
Build relationships across campus and with community partners to enhance students’ career experiences
Contribute to creating a culture of career exploration and equitable career practices and communities

2025 Recipient

Paul Zheng

Past Winners

Paul Zheng (2025)

Carolyn Vue (2024)
Abby Trout (2023)
Lucy Reile, (2021)
Katy Hinz (2020)*
Scott Simpson (2018)*
Anissa Lightner (2017)*
Joyce Halverson (2016)*

Becky Hall (2015)*

Heidi Perman (2014)*
Lynne Schumann (2013)*

*formerly CDN Golden Achievement Award

CDN Golden Gopher Award

This award honors individuals (or teams) who have made a significant positive impact on the lives of University of Minnesota students or CDN. This may be a one-time achievement or achievement over time related to teaching, research, projects, or delivery of exemplary service to students and/or our employer partners.

Nominations from all levels of experience are encouraged for this award.
Describe the significant positive impact (what was the result, impact, accomplishment, improvement to services, etc.).
Demonstrate alignment with CDN’s values of collaboration, innovation, action-oriented, responsible stewardship, or diversity.

2025 Recipients

CDN International Students Working Group (Nick Goffard, Mai Xiong, Jane Sitter, Chrissy Jensen, Holly Hutchins, Kirsten Petersen, Sehyun Hwang, and Chirayu Dongre)

Past Winners

CDN International Students Working Group (2025)
Katie Hauge (2024)
Char Myers (2023)
Chelsea Ochoa (2021)
Bai Vue, (2020)*
Emily Loudon, (2019)*
Xiaoji Zhang, (2018)*
Rebecca Dordel (2017)*
Lisa Novack (2016)*
Beth Lory (2014)*
Sara Nagel Newberg, Chris Buckley, Jeannie Stumne, Heidi Perman (2013)*

*Formerly CDN Golden Gopher Merit Award

Nominations

All nominations will require an essay with a limit of 3100 characters or roughly 500 words that outlines the nominee's impact in relation to the award requirements. For equity purposes, we ask that all nominations follow the character count requirement.

2026 Nomination Form coming soon!

Email the CDN Board (CDNboard@umn.edu) with questions, or submit content for the CDN website, such as professional accomplishments, upcoming events, or professional resources to share. Have feedback about CDN? Let us know!

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