2024 Award Recipients

Ara Bagdasarian '78, President, Solon Living Community

Ara is the retired executive vice president of TravelCenters of America (TA). He began his career with Sohio (Standard Oil of Ohio), which later became BP Oil. Ara retired from TA in 2014 with 36 years of experience in sales, marketing, and management. Ara graduated from John Carroll in 1978 with a degree in Marketing and was a 4-year member of the baseball team, serving as captain his senior year. He is the past president of the Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities and is the co-founder and trustee of the Fragile X Alliance of Ohio. In 2019, Ara and his wife founded Solon Community Living, a non-profit organization dedicated to creating a community-based accessible and sustainable housing model for individuals with disabilities. Ara has been a dedicated member of the John Carroll Board of Directors since since 2017.

“This award is deeply humbling and very special to me. John Carroll has truly been a source of inspiration for me to strive to become a person for and with others. It started as a student and continued into my business career, my nonprofit work, and now as a proud JCU Board Member.” 

Bishop Neal J. Buckon '75, Auxiliary Bishop, Archdiocese for the Military Services

One of the few bishops ever authorized to wear the Ranger Tab. Neal Buckon graduated from John Carroll in 1975 with a degree in Biology, while also serving in ROTC. Upon graduation, Neal embarked on a remarkable life of military service, leadership, and faith. Buckon served on active duty in the U.S. Army from 1975-1982. He was ordained a priest in 1995, serving the Saint Margaret Mary parish in South Euclid, OH. From 1996-2010, he served as a Chaplain in the U.S. Army. His duties took him overseas to Germany, Bosnia, Denmark, England, Norway, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Korea. Upon his retirement from the Army, he was ordained a Bishop for the Archdiocese for Military Services in February 2011 where he continues to serve. His awards and commendations range from the Bronze Star, the Ranger Tab, the Army Commendation Medal, to being a Knight Commander of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem and being a 4th Degree Knight of Columbus (amongst many others). He is a former JCU Board Member and was inducted into the JCU Military Hall of Fame in 2016. The Buckon Leadership Fund, a fund he created to support JCU’s ROTC program, continues to enhance the lives of our ROTC students today. 

“My family moved into University Heights in 1965, and I am to this day a proud resident of the city. John Carroll University is a center for apostolic faith, higher education, and refined culture. JCU has enriched the lives of many family members; and it has been a source of blessings for so many friends and neighbors. I am humbled and privileged to be an Alumni Medalist.”

A.J. Cianflocco, M.D., '72, Retired, Team Physician of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Staff Physician at Cleveland Clinic

A legendary sports medicine doctor who worked with the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Browns, Indians (now Guardians), and thousands of student athletes at John Carroll over his career. Dr. Cianflocco is the former Director of Primary Sports Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic and the former team physician for the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he spent 17 seasons before he retired following the Cavs historic NBA Championship in 2016. Even as he made a name for himself at the Clinic and with the Cavs, Dr. Cianflocco for years served as a physician for John Carroll Athletics, a position he started in 1988 and concluded nearly 20 years later with his retirement. Over the years, A.J. has been a very connected member of his graduating class of 1972, and was one of the initial supporters of the Erie Cathedral Preparatory Endowed Scholarship, which supports students from his hometown of Erie, Pa. In recent years, A.J. has created a fund to support undergraduate medical research for students to prepare them for medical school. 

“The relationships I developed at John Carroll from my friends, teachers, and mentors like Fr. Bukala and Fr. Bichl, were so important to my success in and out of the classroom.”

Howard "Hoddy" Hanna III '69, Chairman of Howard Hanna Real Estate Services, Inc.

Chairman of the largest private real estate company in the United States and a lifelong supporter of his alma mater and causes in his beloved hometown of Pittsburgh, PA. Hoddy’s family started Howard Hanna Real Estate Services in 1957 and has grown to the largest family-owned brokerage in the nation; closing $37.1 billion in sales in 2023. Hoddy currently serves as chair of board for the Heinz History Center in addition to serving on the boards of the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh and the University of Pittsburgh Katz Graduate School of Business. Hoddy graduated from JCU in 1969 with a degree in Political Science and has been a consistent and generous supporter of JCU over the years, supporting alumni engagements in Pittsburgh and Naples, and has served on the Board of Directors for over a decade. In 2013, he and his wife Mary Anne created the Howard and Mary Anne Hanna Endowed Scholarship, which makes a JCU education possible for six JCU students every year.

“It seems like yesterday that I was living in Bernet Hall with great friends: the late David Lloyd, John Marshall, Bill Pietragallo, Tighe Freyvogel and Mike Magulick who have remained an integral part of my life for the past fifty plus years. What I have learned in my four years at Carroll was the Jesuit Fundamental Teachings of integrity and ethical standards which I have practiced in my family, business, and community life.”

Kathleen (Coffey) Kenny '77, Head of School at Gilmour Academy

A career that started as an English teacher at Gilmour Academy (Gates Mills, OH) in the fall of 1978 continues today as the leader of the famed Pre-K through Grade 12 Catholic school in Gates Mills. Kathleen has served the Gilmour community for over 46 years in a variety of roles: teacher, head of the Communications Department, Senior Advancement Officer, parent, and, since 2015, she has distinguished herself as the Head of School; the first woman and non-religious member of the Holy Cross Congregation to serve in this capacity. Kathy graduated in 1978 with a degree in English and was a member of the women’s basketball team. As her years of service to Gilmour increased, so have the resources of the school. Since becoming Head of School, Gilmour’s enrollment, fundraising success, campus facilities, and reputation have grown with her tenure. 

"I have so much gratitude for my John Carroll education. The teacher I became is grounded in the foundation that was formed in the English and Education departments at John Carroll. I learned from some of the best and this experience taught me the transformational power of excellence in teaching."

Terri (Kluesener) Lewandowski '78, Retired, Director of Global Production Services for the American Chemical Society

A former President of the John Carroll University Alumni Association Board and dedicated leader within the 45,000+ Carroll alumni community, Terri is the retired Director of Global Composition Services for the American Chemical Society. Throughout her career, she has held a number of  technical, managerial, IT, marketing, publishing, and software positions. She graduated from JCU in 1978 with a degree in mathematics and has been a member of the John Carroll Board of Directors since 2015. She and her husband George ’78 annually accompany JCU students on medical missions to Honduras and they are a mainstay at JCU’s alumni and enrollment events in their hometown of Columbus, OH. In addition to her years of service to John Carroll, she volunteers with Columbus Catholic Social Services and the Life Care Alliance.

“John Carroll University has been a home for me, a place to grow and develop in all aspects of my life for the last 50 years. From meeting my husband George the first week at the Freshman picnic, being in the classroom as a student, being a parent of a student, to being a volunteer and board member. Working with people who are dedicated to being men and women for and with others has, and continues to, educate me and enrich my life.”

Recognized around the world for his impressive volume of work, Dany is a 2011 graduate who’s young life has been defined by serving others on JCU’s campus, in his home country of Honduras, and throughout Central America. Dany was a prolific participant in JCU’s famed Honduras immersion program, and spent many years helping run the program himself, often exhausting his own vacation time and at his own expense to help JCU students. Since his graduation, Dany has worked in Pittsburgh, San Salvador, El Salvador, Ecuador, and Honduras in a variety of nonprofit and consultancy roles with the Red Cross, John Jay College, and the United States Institute for Peace. He recently published his second book “Chronicles of What We Leave on the Shore” a collection of his own essays on the human experience in Central America.

“Mr. Erie, PA” will go down as one of the great sportsmen in the history of his beloved hometown, serving for over 6 decades as an athletic director, coach, and educator in the Flagship City. He created the Erie Sports Commission, founded the McDonald’s Classic; one of the best 4-team high school basketball tournaments in the USA, and was the owner of the Erie Otters hockey team from 1996-2008. He is a member of both the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame as well as the Cathedral Prep Athletic Hall of Fame (both as an individual and as a coach). He is well known in the JCU community as the founder of the University Club Alumni Association and in 2021, he led the charge amongst his U-Club brothers to create a fund to support enhanced programming for John Carroll students. This fund has raised over $150,000 and continues to enhance the student experience for every Carroll student.