Rising Star Young Leader Award

1. Nominations are forwarded from NAFSA regional leadership teams. Each NAFSA region may nominate one candidate annually. To receive information about the nomination procedure, contact the leadership of your NAFSA Region.
2. The nominee has served in their present area of expertise/specialization no more than 5 years, as indicated with a résumé or c.v. submitted with the nomination. The nominee does not need to be a current NAFSA member. 
3. The nominee shows passion and has made significant contributions to their department, unit, institution, organization, to the NAFSA community, and/or to the field of international education by engaging in activities such as:
   1. Organizing or lean activity or range of activities or services within their organization that promotes international education
   2. Demonstrating innovation in their area of specialization
   3. Presenting at conferences and/or have engaged in publications of their work
   4. Contributing to international education as a volunteer leader
4. The nominee shows promise in making further contributions to the field of international education as a leader

Nominations for the Rising Star Young Leader award are forwarded from NAFSA regions. Each NAFSA region may nominate one candidate annually. To receive information about the nomination procedure, contact the NAFSA Regions team.

The awardee will receive:

• Complimentary registration to attend NAFSA Annual Conference to receive this award
• Complimentary membership for one year
• Recognition at a NAFSA Annual Conference
• Acknowledgement on signage at the NAFSA Annual Conference and on the NAFSA website
• A video interview to be hosted on the NAFSA website
• An opportunity to review Shared Interest proposals for a future annual conference
• A framed recognition plaque to display at their home or office or a donation made in their honor to a charity in partnership with NAFSA
• An invitation to write a NAFSA blog post on their connections to international education, NAFSA leadership, etc.

• Jonathan Rivera Perez, Georgia Institute of Technology (2025)
• Louis Deemer, University of Pittsburgh (2024)
• Kevin Sullivan, Case Western Reserve University (2023)
• Caitlin Johnson, University of Kentucky (2022)
• Dawn Wilkenfeld, Montclair State University (2021)
• Anna McCreedy, UC Berkeley (2020)
• Becca AbuRakia-Einhorn, Gallaudet University (2019)
• Carolyn Becker, Texas Woman’s University (2018)
• Luis Legaspi (2017), University of California-San Diego (2017)
• Shao Chen (Johanna) Pan-Carr, Fordham University (2016)
• Seth Riker, University of Kentucky (2015)