Dr. Jane Schuchardt, PhD (’74) Distinguished Service Award Dr. Jane Schuchardt is a long-time advocate for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with extensive professional national leadership experience. After earning her bachelor’s degree from UNL in 1974, she earned her master’s from Oklahoma State and Ph.D. from Iowa State. Dr. Schuchardt currently serves on the NAA’s Council of Alumni Ambassadors and is active within the Nebraska Women’s Leadership Network. She also serves on the NU President’s Advisory Council and the University of Nebraska Foundation Board of Trustees. She and her husband Rick have endowed a scholarship fund for UNL students majoring in agriculture or human sciences. They engage in organic farming in northeast Nebraska, where Dr. Schuchardt also is a newspaper community columnist and active in several community service organizations. The Pinkerton Family Family Tree Award When George and Harriet (Klotz) Pinkerton graduated from the University of Nebraska, both first-generation college graduates, it began a success story now four generations old. Over those four generations, 36 of 44 family members would graduate from UNL, including all three of George and Harriet’s children and their spouses. Members of the Pinkerton family who attended UNL have earned graduate and undergraduate degrees in Veterinary Science, Animal Science, Wildlife and Fisheries, Agriculture, Agronomy, and more. Still more members have made their mark as engineers, dentists, educators, and in the armed service, notably Brigadier General Dean Linscott, the Commanding General of the 98th Training Division. State Sen. Matt Hansen (’10, ’13) Public Service Award Sen. Matt Hansen has represented District 26 (northeast Lincoln) in the Nebraska Legislature since 2015. He earned a bachelor’s in psychology and political science in 2010 and graduated from the University of Nebraska College of Law in 2013. In the Legislature, Sen. Hansen serves on the Urban Affairs Committee, the Business and Labor Committee and is the vice-chairperson of the Government, Veterans, and Military Affairs Committee. In his time in the Legislature, he has worked on a number of issues including supporting housing, helping grow our economy and workforce, and improving outcomes in our criminal justice system. Sen. Hansen also is an adjunct professor at Bellevue University and Nebraska Wesleyan University, where he teaches classes in American politics. State Sen. Myron Dorn (’76) Public Service Award Sen. Myron Dorn has represented District 30 in southeast Nebraska, which includes his hometown of Beatrice, since 2018. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from UNL in 1976. In the Legislature, Sen. Dorn serves on the Appropriations Committee and Building Maintenance Committee. He also is a former chairman of the Gage County Board of Commissioners and of the Firth Coop and Dorchester Coop. A proud Nebraska farmer, Sen. Dorn also is a member of the Nebraska Farmers Union, Nebraska Farm Bureau, Nebraska Cattlemen, Nebraska Soybean Association and Nebraska Corn Growers Association. He and his wife Julie have two children, Kyle and Erin.
Dr. Barbara J. DiBernard Doc Elliott Award The University of Nebraska-Lincoln English Department hired Barbara DiBernard in 1978 to teach modern British fiction, but soon after she accepted an invitation from the newly established women’s studies program to teach courses in women’s literature. This decision defined the rest of her career. DiBernard taught undergrad and graduate courses in women’s literature and was director of the women’s studies program for several years. She and and Joy Ritchie established an LGBTQ/sexuality studies minor for undergrad and graduate students. DiBernard’s work and passion always focused on the learning and experiences of students. For example, she created opportunities in service learning before there was a formal program, and she supported students in establishing a women’s studies conference which continues to this day. . DiBernard identifies herself as a teacher first. She has won numerous awards for her teaching, including the Outstanding Teaching and Instructional Activity Award. But of most value to her are the ongoing contributions her former students make to a more just world.