The George B. Sweeney Endowed Campion Award for Service is available to full-time, enrolled, sophomore and junior students who are in good academic standing (a GPA of 2.0 or higher) and good University standing. All candidates meeting the required conditions of the award are eligible for consideration.
Candidates should have a strong background in the following (1) record of involvement in community service and social action, (2) involvement/dedication to a faith tradition and/or spirituality, and (3) strong evidence of leadership potential.
Selection Process:
Awardees will be selected by a committee composed of the Director of the Center for Service and Social Action and other JCU faculty, staff, and administrators.
Evaluation Criteria:
- Demonstrated commitment to service and social action
- Involvement in/dedication to a faith tradition and/or spirituality
- Leadership ability/potential
- Sophomore (having completed 25-54 hours and are in their third semester or more at JCU) or Junior (having completed 55-85 hours) in good academic standing
- Letters of recommendation from two references
Application Timeline:
- Applications open on November 15, 2022
- Applications are due on December 16, 2022
Application Requirements:
- Complete an application form.
- Provide two references who have knowledge of your service activities. Those references should be full-time JCU faculty or staff, or people who are familiar with your leadership role in a campus or community organization. Fellow students may NOT serve as references. Please distribute this reference form to these individuals and provide their information below. Please have letters sent directly to campionaward@jcu.edu.
- Letters of support from agency-based service supervisors are appreciated, but not necessary. Please ask the supervisor to send the recommendation directly to campionaward@jcu.edu.
NOTE: The award is not intended to reduce existing institutional aid already awarded. However, if the student is a recipient of Federal funds, regulations may require John Carroll University to alter a student’s self-help aid such as loans or work-study. In rare cases, student aid may be limited to the total cost of education.
- 2023 | Selena Alamir '24, and Sydney Burger '25
- 2022 | Jannat Ali '23, Vince Rizzo '23, Laken Kincaid '24
- 2021 | Caitlin Drake '22, and Kathryn (Katy) Zoller '23
- 2020 | Maguire Tausch ’21, Raymond (Ray) Flannery '22
- 2019 | Elizabeth (Liz) Marcelli ’20, Jacob Fritsch '21
- 2018 | Sean Freeman ’19, Maura Wallace ’20
- 2017 | William M. DiPasquale ’18, Leanne Tang ’19
- 2016 | Marina Giannirakis ’17, Robin Goist ’18
- 2015 | Patrick Vecellio ’16, Annmarie Kirchner ’17
- 2014 | Courtney Radtkin ’15, Katie Coffey ’15, Grace Donnelly ’16
- 2013 | Alyssa Giannirakis ’14, Ned Barnes ’15, Michael Gong ’15
- 2012 | McKenzae Bartels ’14, Maggie Hutchison ’14, Julia Blanchard ’14
- 2011 | Catherine Distelrath ’12, Jeffrey Hatgas ’12, Jillian Dunn ’13
- 2010 | Daniel Fitzmaurice ’11, Thomas Coast ’12
- 2009 | Natalie Terry ’10, Kevin Henderson ’11
- 1999 | Chris Kerr ’00, Trena Marks ’00, Patrick Corrigan ’01
- 1998 | David Birchok ’99, Patrick Scanlan ’00, Brian Sinchak ’00
- 1997 | Grant Mast ’98, Melanie Shakarian ’98, Julie Thorud ’99
- 1996 | David Roth ’97, Penny Roxas ’98, Valerie Williams ’98
2023 Campion Award Winners
Selena Alamir '24

Selena is a junior from Westlake, Ohio majoring in Spanish and minoring in Peace, Justice, and Human Rights. She is an Arrupe Scholar on a Pre-med track and already has early admission to Ohio University’s School of Medicine. Selena has made leadership, service, community engagement, and advocacy central commitments of her time at JCU. She has been involved across campus in student organizations and across borders as an immersion leader for the Honduras Medical Immersion trip.
As a CSSA Student Liaison and leader, Selena has led groups of JCU students at Boys Hope Girls Hope, the Saturday Tutoring program, the Fatima Family Center, Esperanza, the Lutheran Metropolitan Ministry Men's Shelter Poetry Program, and the Labre Program. She leads students in the community, provides mentorship, helps motivate, inspire others, and problem solves. On campus, Selena is a mentor for the Center for Student Diversity and Inclusion’s MELT Program to help first generation college students succeed. (Match.Empower.Learn.Teach.)
Selena’s involvement in the LMM Men’s Shelter gave her a deeper understanding of the complexities of homelessness as she got to know the individuals on a personal level who were experiencing homelessness. Her supervisor had this to say: “While a great many JCU students have been part of service at this shelter, Selena stands out to me for the way she inspired all of us (shelter residents, staff, and volunteers) in our discussions. I believe such inspiration originates in Selena’s mature understanding of social justice issues stemming from a sensitive and spiritual understanding of her fellow human beings.”
Building on her experience at LMM, in summer of 2021, Selena was selected for an internship at the Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless. Selena’s work focused on understanding and addressing the root causes of homelessness through organizing, advocacy, education, and street outreach. As part of her internship she helped organize a mayoral forum on homelessness, designed social media campaigns to educate the public, and participated in the Homeless Congress where men and women experiencing homelessness identified areas of mutual concern and delineated action steps to pursue the change they desired. We are delighted to recognize Selena Alamir as the 2023 Junior Class recipient of the Campion Award.
Sydney Burger '25

Sydney Burger is a sophomore from Twinsburg, Ohio majoring in Communications and Peace, Justice, and Human Rights.
Sydney is the Vice President of Labre and responsible for coordinating and leading Labre’s outreach to men and women experiencing homelessness in Cleveland. Her work involves ordering supplies, packing meals, sorting through donations, assembling donation bags, and leading groups of JCU students to provide nourishment and friendship with those experiencing homelessness. Week after week, rain or shine, (or snow, or sleet) students sustain the warmth of human connection and bonds of relationship. In reflecting on her leadership with Labre, Sydney writes, “It is not uncommon for new volunteers to be nervous or uncomfortable when first interacting with our homeless friends. I love being able to help others connect and bond with those we visit.”
In addition to Labre, Sydney’s dedication to the Cleveland community is seen in her wide-ranging involvement with civic initiatives and the nonprofit sector. In the summer of 2022, Sydney served as a summer intern at Neighborhood Connections through CSSA’s Summer in the City Internship program. In her role, Sydney was tasked with “network weaving”: the important but often slow work of relationship building based on the Asset-Based Community Development framework. Over the course of the summer, Sydney built connections with organizations including University Settlement, the Cleveland Housing Network, Cleveland Sews/Cosmic Bobbins, the St. Clair Superior Development Corporation, and Lutheran Metropolitan Ministry. When asked to reflect on Sydney’s work, a staff member at University Settlement wrote, “Sydney was extremely helpful to our group of older adults when we joined Cleveland Sews for gardening and sewing classes. She displayed a passion for making change in the community and connecting with its members.”
Sydney’s role with Neighborhood Connections led to her involvement with Cleveland Votes, a nonpartisan, civic engagement organization. As a member of Civic Literacy Community Planning Team, Sydney planned and executed civic literacy events across the city. Sydney has participated actively in social justice events and conferences that sustain her work and deepen her learning. As a CSSA Student Liaison, she mentors other students to serve with humility and search for common ground in every encounter with others. We are delighted to recognize Sydney Burger as the 2023 Sophomore Class recipient of the Campion Award.