Arthur S. Flemming Awards Honor Federal Innovators in Science, Legal, Leadership
Twelve federal employees were honored this week with the Arthur S. Flemming Awards, which honor accomplishments in science and leadership that benefited the nation.
The induction ceremony took place on Sunday, November 2, 2025, at the National Academy of Sciences Building in downtown Washington, D.C.
The Flemming Awards are the nation’s oldest and most prestigious awards for government service given from outside the government. The awards are coordinated by George Washington University’s Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration and the National Academy of Public Administration (NAPA).
Kathryn Newcomer, a public policy and public administration professor at GWU and president of the Flemming Awards Commission, told GovExec the award is taking on heightened significance given the ongoing shutdown and the turmoil in the federal workforce this year.
“There are wonderful people who we need to celebrate more than ever,” said Newcomer.
“This year has been a time of tremendous change for public servants, but one constant has been their steadfast commitment to the mission of serving the American people,” said James-Christian Blockwood, President and CEO of the Academy.
This year’s awardees have made groundbreaking discoveries and advancements that include transforming how victims of terrorism are compensated, improving the accessibility of nutrition recommendations, advancing potential cures for Alzheimer's and improving drinking water and waste disposal in American Indian and Alaska Native nations, among other contributions.
The 76th annual Arthur S. Flemming Award recipients are the following:
Applied Science and Engineering
Dr. Amara Holder - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Dr. Julie Hess - U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service
Shannon Duff - National Institute of Standards & Technology
Basic Science
Dr. Benjamin D. Prince -United States Air Force, Air Force Research Laboratory, Space Vehicles Directorate
Dr. Laura Sinclair -National Institute of Standards & Technology
Leadership and Management
Dr. Michelle Stephens - National Institute of Standards & Technology
Dr. Supriyo De - National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Aging
Dr. David C. Goff, Jr. - National Institutes of Health, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
Lt. Cmdr. Melissa de Vera - Indian Health Service
Legal Achievement
Heidi Nielson - U.S. Government Accountability Office
Nick McDaniel - U.S. Department of Justice, Environment and Natural Resources Division
Social Science, Clinical Trials, and Translational Research
Dr. Sung-Yun Pai - National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute
McDaniel, who found out about the Flemming Award about the same time he accepted the deferred resignation initiative to head into private practice, said it was an environmental enforcement externship that piqued his interest in public service.
“It didn't seem like there was any other place where you could, first and foremost, be working in the public interest and doing public service, which was something that was important to me and something I wanted to pursue,” McDaniel told GovExec.
The Arthur S. Flemming Awards are named after Arthur Sherwood Flemming, a distinguished government official who served seven presidential administrations of both parties, most notably as Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare under President Dwight Eisenhower.
Notable past recipients include Neil Armstrong, Dr. Anthony Fauci, Paul Volcker, Elizabeth Dole, and Gene Dodaro.
