Annual Alumni Achievement Awards

Gloria Cater, Alumni Board President Kathleen Carten ’79, Allyce Najimy, Amy Cardoso

Celebrating Alumni Achievement

The inaugural Beacon Awards were bestowed on five outstanding individuals this past June. These awards are given annually to celebrate the successes of our exemplary alumni.

BOSTON STATE COLLEGE DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI AWARD

Marie Fox ’52

(posthumously)

Marie founded the Boston Teachers College Scholarship Committee and was instrumental in raising money for the BTC Scholarship Fund, which surpassed $1 million last year. A staple at the Boston Teachers College Scholarship Luncheon since its inception, Marie organized the event for over 25 years alongside her classmates. She had a successful and rewarding career as a first grade teacher in Boston and Newton for many years. Sadly, Marie passed away in April at the age of 91, but she will be remembered as a leader in the field of education and a tremendous supporter of UMass Boston.

BOSTON STATE COLLEGE OUTSTANDING SERVICE AWARD

James P. McDonough ’74

Jim retired as president and CEO of Randolph Bancorp Inc. Prior to his time at Randolph Bancorp, Jim served as Chancellor and chief financial officer of the Archdiocese of Boston, where he was nationally recognized for transforming the organization’s finances and creating budget transparency. He serves on several boards throughout Boston and the South Shore.

UMASS BOSTON DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI AWARD

Allyce Najimy G’88

Allyce serves on the UMass Boston Sport Leadership and Administration Program Advisory Board and is an associate lecturer who teaches the Careers in Sports & Sport Internship class. She has helped secure internships for UMass Boston students with a wide array of sport organizations, including Boston Athletic Association, Boston Celtics, Boston Red Sox, Fenway Sports Group, New England Patriots, MLS, NESN, and Special Olympics. Since 2007, she has served as the founding executive director and chief executive officer of the Foundation to be Named Later, whose mission is dedicated to improving lives through education, leadership, and the health development of youth and families. Allyce serves on various boards throughout the city and metropolitan Boston and is responsible for raising critical funds for scholarships to ensure that a diverse and inclusive student body gets the opportunity to pursue their talents and achieve their dreams with a career in sports.

UMASS BOSTON OUTSTANDING SERVICE AWARD

Gloria Cater PhD’10

Growing up during a time when there were very few Black nurses, Gloria found herself in a co-op program in nursing after failing to find a physical therapy program that would provide enough scholarship aid. After completing the program, Gloria embarked on a nursing career that would span more than 50 years, working in departments including maternity, pediatrics, and community health. Gloria and her husband worked and lived as house parents in Jamaica Plain in a home for mothers and babies. Gloria served new single parents, teaching them how to care for their infant children and offering support as they transitioned to their new homes. She recruited mentors for mothers, wrote grants to fund specialized programs for new mothers, and served on several committees that promoted diversity and inclusion, having served in a leadership role for the Massachusetts Action Coalition. Over the course of her career, she earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees and a doctorate, all in nursing.

UMASS BOSTON EMERGING LEADER AWARD

Amy Cardoso G’17

Described as a “passionate, dedicated, giving, and selfless human," Amy currently serves as an English teacher in the PEAK program at Woburn Memorial High School, where she has spent the last 11 years. During her tenure at Woburn High, she has advised several student clubs and organizations, and serves on various community boards. Amy is a two-time recipient of the Woburn Community Educational Foundation’s Woburn Awesome Teacher Award, and she was the recipient of the 2020 Massachusetts Unsung Heroine Award for the 15th Middlesex District of Massachusetts. Amy speaks three languages and spends her summers as a paralegal for a notable immigration law firm in Boston, where she can express her passion for social justice and immigrant rights.

Do you know an alumnus/a of UMass Boston or its legacy schools who is deserving of a Beacon Award? For more information on each award and to submit a nomination, visit umb.edu/AAA.