Selection criteria | Nomination form | Recipients

The Alumni Humanitarian Award, established in 2001, is bestowed upon alumni of the University of Illinois by the Alumni Association, on behalf of the University of Illinois. It is presented to those alumni who, through their outstanding involvement and dedication, have made a significant contribution of volunteer leadership or service which has improved or enriched the lives of others and the welfare of humanity, and whose accomplishments reflect admirably on or bring honor to their Alma Mater.

2008 Recipient

Through the medical stories she covers in her broadcasts with CBS 11 News in Dallas-Fort Worth, Dr. Prerna Mona Khanna, MD ’91, empowers her viewers to lead healthier lives. A triple board-certified medical doctor and Emmy award-winning medical journalist, “Dr. Mona,” as she is popularly known, has dedicated herself to increasing health literacy through mass media education. In addition to informing the public about health issues, Khanna has also spent the last decade providing and promoting emergency medical services through her volunteer efforts with humanitarian agencies worldwide. In 2006, she moderated a panel to educate and recruit volunteers and donors for Doctors Without Borders. In 2005, as a member of the Texas-4 Disaster Medical Assistance Team, she offloaded patients from rescue helicopters and treated Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita evacuees, while filing daily reports for CBS News. Khanna’s other disaster deployments have included Ground Zero, the Fort Worth Alliance Air Show, the crash of Alaska Airlines Flight 261 and the refugee headquarters in Kosovo. While reporting on the Indian Ocean tsunami aftermath in 2005, Khanna also led a group of paramedics who provided medical care to hundreds of survivors. Her medical relief efforts during Hurricane Katrina and the 9/11 attacks earned her commendations from Congress and the governors of Texas and California, among others. For her leadership in empowering people throughout the world through her television, radio, magazine and online health reports, Dr. Mona has received more than 40 honors and awards in the past five years, including the National Association of Minority Media Executives 2007 Award of Valor.

Previous Recipients

2007
Donald C. Findlay II ’58 DENT, ’60 DDS

2006
Michael VanRooyen, RES ’89, MPH ’96

2005
Sally West Brooks '63 NURS

2004
Robert Smithwick DDS '44

2002
Vickii Coffey '81 LAS