St. John’s University to Honor Six as Part of Annual Founder’s Week Celebration

For Immediate Release: August 26, 2025                    
Media Contact: James Stephen Smith, 718-990-5789 (o), 516-313-4568 (m), [email protected]
Director of Media Relations, St. John’s University

QUEENS, NY, (August 26, 2025) —Honoring the enduring legacy of St. Vincent de Paul and his life of service to the disadvantaged, the St. John’s University community will celebrate Founder’s Week with eight days of mission-focused events from Monday, September 22 to Monday, September 29, 2025.

The theme of 2025 Founder’s Week is “Be Vincentian: Set Your Heart on Fire.” Highlights include the Vincentian Heritage Lecture with the Most Rev. David M. O'Connell, C.M., J.C.D., Bishop of the Diocese of Trenton, NJ, on September 22; Mass at the Queens, NY campus on Friday, September 26, the eve of St. Vincent’s feast day; and University Service Day on Saturday, September 27.

On Thursday, September 25, the University will celebrate the annual Vincentian Convocation, where it will recognize six honorees who embody the charitable ideals of St. Vincent.

• Manouchkathe Cassagnol, Pharm.D., Clinical Professor, Department of Clinical Pharmacy Practice, College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, will receive the Vincentian Mission Award, which is given to a member of the faculty, staff, or administration who has made a demonstrated commitment to the University’s mission. Dr. Cassagnol is Executive Director of the Academic Center for Equity and Inclusion.
• The housing development agency Habitat for Humanity, New York City and Westchester County will be honored with the Caritas Medal, given for service to the poor in the metropolitan area. The award will be accepted by Chief Executive Officer Sabrina Lippman.
• MaryAnn Dantuono, Esq. ’83L, a member of the Ladies of Charity AIC-USA and a representative of the International Association of Charities (AIC) to the United Nations, will receive the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Medal, which is given to a Catholic laywoman who embodies in her life the values and vision of Mother Seton (1774–1821), who was canonized in 1975.
• Ralph McCloud, Senior Fellow at the Washington, DC-based NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice, will receive the St. Vincent de Paul Medal, which is given to a Catholic layman who embodies in his life the ideals and values of St. Vincent de Paul (1581–1660), who was canonized in 1737.
• Adhikaar for Social Justice and Human Rights will receive the Frédéric Ozanam Award, which is given to an organization that blends quality service with effective and respectful concern for the poor or needy. Adhikaar, which means rights in the Nepalese language, is a women-led social justice advocate for Nepali-speaking immigrants and refugees based in Woodside, NY. The award will be accepted by Meenu Gorkhali, Senior Director of Operations, Human Resources, and Finance. 
• The Congregation of the Mission Nongovernmental Organization (NGO) at the United Nations will receive the International Medal for its contributions to the global Vincentian community. The organization’s former Representative to the UN, James Claffey, will accept the award.

About St. John’s University:
St. John’s University is a private, coeducational, Roman Catholic University founded in 1870 by the Congregation of the Mission (the Vincentians), with its main campus located in Queens, NY. St. John’s University also has campuses and locations in Manhattan, NY; Rome, Italy; Paris, France; and Limerick, Ireland. 

St. John’s University is comprised of six Schools and Colleges, including the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, The Lesley H. and William L. Collins College of Professional Studies, St. John’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, The Peter J. Tobin College of Business (including the Maurice R. Greenberg School of Risk Management, Insurance and Actuarial Science), The School of Education, and the School of Law. 

As of Fall 2024, the University has more than 1,400 full-time and part-time faculty; almost 16,000 undergraduate students; and 3,749 graduate students from 45 states (and Washington, DC, and US Virgin Islands) and 122 countries. St. John’s offers more than 200 undergraduate and graduate programs, including 16 doctoral programs.