Four University of Nebraska–Lincoln alumni will be honored as the Jackie Gaughan Multicultural Center’s 2019 Hall of Fame class.
Inductees are Rebekka Schlichting (Class of 2016), assistant director of Vision Maker Media; Marthaellen Florence (1980), director of community, Nebraska Educational Telecommunication; Ben Salazar (1973), activist for the Latino community; and Phat Nguyen (2018), platoon leader for the U.S. Army.
Moises Padilla (2010), director of the Nebraska College Preparatory Academy, will also be recognized with the inaugural Gaughan Center Influencer Award. The honor is reserved for faculty and staff who go over and beyond the call of duty to support students.
The honors will be presented during a 4:30 p.m. Oct. 4 ceremony in the Nebraska Union. The ceremony is free and open to the campus community.
Launched in 2018, the Gaughan Center Hall of Fame honors outstanding multicultural alumni. The award ceremony is part of the university’s Multicultural Alumni Homecoming, which was created by the Chancellor’s Commission on the Status of People of Color and the Gaughan Multicultural Center. The activities are designed to increase connections between Nebraska’s multicultural alumni, faculty and students.
Hall of fame honorees are featured in a display in the Gaughan Multicultural Center. Learn more about the 2019 award winners below.
2019 inductees | Jackie Gaughan Multicultural Center Hall of Fame
Rebekka Schlicting (2016)
Schlicting is the assistant director of Vision Maker Media, where she works to encourage and engage native people to share their stories. A member of the Loway Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska, Schlicting is the chair of the powwow committee. Her previous accolades include the 40-Under-40 award from the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development and the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights award and grand prize.
Marthaellen Florence (1980)
Florence is the director of community for Nebraska Educational Telecommunications, where she has worked for over four decades with the past 25 years in community engagement, partnership development and community impact strategies. She has served as the chair of the Jazz in June music series and currently serves on the boards for the Lincoln City Libraries, Lincoln Community Foundation, Flatwater Shakespeare Company, Lincoln Journal Star Editorial Board and as president of the board of directors for the Malone Community Center.
Ben Salazar (1973)
Salazar is a community activist for the Latino community and has worked with the Campaign for Human Development, an arm of the United Farm Workers under César Chávez. Salazar has served his community as an attorney, a journalist/writer, and a consultant for juvenile reform. He was one of five individuals who helped found the university’s Mexican American Student Association. He served as its first president.
Phat Nguyen (2018)
Nguyen serves as a platoon leader for the U.S. Army in Suwon, South Korea. During his time at Nebraska, he helped re-establish, found and charter various student organizations, including the Vietnamese Student Association, Asian Student Union, Lambda Phi Epsilon International Fraternity, and Liberty in North Korea. He also founded the first Asian Student Leadership Conference and began celebration of the Asian Pacific Islander Desi American Heritage Month.
