OTR mural to celebrate UC alumni superheroes

The University of Cincinnati Alumni Association (UCAA) will mark its annual Alumni Celebration during its upcoming Alumni Week, April 4-10, with a community art project commemorating the slate of alumni honorees receiving the organization’s top awards. To be installed in downtown Cincinnati’s Over-the-Rhine neighborhood, the pop art/comic book-style mural will portray alumni as superheroes featuring various “super powers” that they deploy to be a positive force throughout the world.

The group is headlined by William Howard Taft Medal recipients Paul and Kim Polman. Paul, the retired CEO of Unilever and current chair of IMAGINE, a social venture dedicated to systems change, earned a business degree from UC in 1979 and received an honorary degree in 2009. Kim, an international public speaker, author, musician, and chair of the Reboot the Future Foundation, earned a degree from CCM in 1979. The Polmans are champions of global sustainability and social responsibility.

The artwork will remain on display through March 2023. UCAA commissioned Chroma Projects to design and illustrate the project, which will be painted on the side of a building at 1430 Vine Street.

“Through their prodigious accomplishments, our tremendous alumni can be considered superheroes, each changing the world in their own ways,” said Jennifer Heisey, UC’s Chief Alumni Officer. “Especially with the resurgence of this genre in popular culture, we saw a fun and timely opportunity to cast our honorees in this deserving light. And doing so with an amazing mural emphasizes the symbiotic roles that our university and community play to enhance our lives.”

Alumni are invited to participate in one of the many engaging events and experiences occurring throughout UC Alumni Week. In recognition of the 2022 honorees, alumni and friends are encouraged to make a gift during UC Day of Giving, the 24-hour campaign running from noon to noon, April 7-8, to support the UC programs and causes that matter most to them. 

William Howard Taft Medal for Notable Achievement
Paul G. Polman, MA and MBA ’79, Hon ’09
Kim E. Polman, CCM ’79

Robert E. Dobbs Distinguished Service Award
W. Troy Neat, Bus ’91

Marian A. Spencer Mosaic Award
Brigman P. Owens, CECH ’65, Hon ’08

Jeffrey Hurwitz Young Outstanding Achievement Award
Jordan Thompson, CECH ’18, ’20

Outstanding Alumni Awards
Eric Deaton ’19 — College of Allied Health Sciences
Delmer Ellis ’73, ’78 — College of Education, Criminal Justice, & Human Services
Vanessa Gilles, CECH ’18 — UC Athletics
Demilade B. Haastrup, PharmD, RPh ’16 — UC Clermont College
Deborah P. Hopson, PhD ’77 — College of Nursing
Jackie Neumann ’71, ’75 — Carl H. Lindner College of Business
Kim Oberlander ’04 — UC Blue Ash College
Christopher B. Peltier, M.D., A&S ’91, Med ’95 — College of Medicine
Earl G. Rivers, DMA ’76 — College-Conservatory of Music
Jeffrey Stamps, RPh ’84 — James L. Winkle College of Pharmacy
Kristen Tomlan ’11 — College of Design, Architecture, Art, & Planning
Phyllis Turner-Brim ’93 — College of Law
Darlene Walley, PhD ’84 — College of Arts and Sciences
Andrea Zahumensky ’00 — College of Engineering and Applied Science

Learn more about our 2022 honorees.