Alumni Recognition Awards
2026 Alumni Recognition Award Recipients
Andy and Carol Denny Excellence in Teaching Award – James "Jay" Hunt ‘05, MA ’09, MBA ‘16 – Senior Instructor, Management, USA Mitchell College of Business
Beth and Don Davis Excellence in Advising Award – Lauren M. Williams – Honors Academic Advisor, USA Honors College
Olivia Rambo McGlothren Outstanding Scholar Award – Shenghua Wu – Associate Professor, Department of Civil, Coastal and Environmental Engineering, USA College of Engineering
USANAA Faculty Innovation Award – Bhushan Lohar Ph.D. ‘22 – Assistant Professor of Systems Engineering in the College of Engineering
Lisa Bethea Kavanaugh Outstanding Young Alumni Award – Joshua L. Jones '11 - Director, USA Hospital Based Violence Intervention Program
These awards recognize the excellent service provided to students, alumni, and other constituencies by employees of the University of South Alabama. The Alumni Association recognizes selected University employees annually for their outstanding service and dedication.
This award recognizes a USA graduate who is 40 years of age or younger at the time of nomination for their early career accomplishments, the impact of their community service and volunteer efforts and personal development. The award acknowledges alumni who are making a substantial mark early on in their career and show promise of significant professional distinction in the future.
This award acknowledges the central role of teaching at USA by recognizing faculty for their outstanding teaching contributions. The award is open to any full-time instructional faculty member with at least five years of teaching experience at the University of South Alabama. This is no limit to the number of nominations submitted by college/school or department. Recipients are not eligible for nomination for three consecutive years following the award.
This award honors a faculty member for high achievements in the realm of scholarship as appropriate to his or her discipline. The award is open to any full-time faculty member who has been at USA for at least five years. This is no limit to the number of nominations submitted by college/school or department.
This award acknowledges the importance of advising at USA by annually recognizing faculty and staff for their outstanding advising contributions. The award is open to any full-time instructional faculty member or academic advisor staff member with at least three years of advising experience at the University of South Alabama. This is no limit to the number of nominations submitted by college/school or department. Recipients are not eligible for nomination for three consecutive years following the award.