Four NEOMED faculty and staff honored with President’s Awards of Excellence
Congratulations to Joann Hayes, Jordan Cinderich, Jesse Young, Ph.D., and Thomas Mike, M.D., the recipients of the 2025 President’s Awards of Excellence! The four recipients were honored during the Board of Trustees meeting on Sept. 9, 2025, and were further recognized by President John Langell during the September University Update.
The President’s Awards of Excellence recognize achievements and contributions of faculty in teaching and continuous improvement and achievements and contributions of staff in operational efficiencies.
Staff Excellence in Continuous Improvement: Joann Hayes
Joann Hayes has worked to strengthen NEOMED for 45 years – starting out when the University was just one college with a charter class of 42 students. She has served in many roles, all of which have helped NEOMED’s growth and standing as a leader in educating the next generation of health professionals.
As Dr. Langell noted in presenting the award, she is “a mentor, collaborator and role model who has elevated every role she has held.”
She was initially interested in using her finance background to seek a job in the business department. However, after learning there were no open positions in the business department, she applied and was hired in the College of Medicine curriculum and development office. Once she became accustomed to the world of medical education, she knew she found her home.
Hayes takes pride in her work knowing that it has a major impact on the health and quality of life in our community. This especially hit home while her husband went through a difficult bout with COVID, spending more than nine months between the CCU and rehab hospital.
“I was very confident he was receiving the best care,” she said, filled with a deep appreciation for the education and training the physicians and other health professionals went through to get to that point.
Hayes has filled many roles and has a long list of accomplishments during her time at NEOMED. In her current position as manager of Clinical Faculty Relations, Joann enjoys interacting with clinical faculty and their support staff, noting they are the “backbone” of the educational program. She finds it especially rewarding working with Dr. Giselle Hamad, associate dean for Clinical Faculty Affairs.
Despite her long tenure at NEOMED, Hayes has no plans to slow down. “There’s still so much to be done,” said Hayes. “Our University continues to grow, there are new partnerships, new programs. There is just so much to be excited for and so much ahead of us.”
Staff Excellence in Continuous Improvement: Jordan Cinderich
Jordan Cinderich is determined to improve health well beyond the NEOMED campus. He expanded NEOMED’s successful Lean Six Sigma program for health professionals for University partners to strengthen regional healthcare leadership. Recently, he launched the Northeast Ohio Transformation Forum, which had its inaugural event in May 2025.
“This annual event now situates NEOMED and Executive Education as the neutral convener and catalyst of radical collaboration across all Northeast Ohio health systems as we advance into the future of healthcare together,” he said.
In just its first year, the event united 15 major healthcare organizations to position NEOMED as a trusted regional leader.
In presenting the award, Dr. Langell said Cinderich “exemplifies NEOMED’s values of integrity, collaboration and excellence.”
Cinderich credits strong leadership for his ability to expand NEOMED’s footprint in the health care industry.
“I have been empowered with the resources, tools and mentorship to build new programs and opportunities for my colleagues to solve problems, improve their processes and develop skills,” Cinderich said.
Cinderich now looks forward to building on his accomplishments.
“I am amazed by how much I have grown and learned in such a short time,” Cinderich said. “This would have never be possible without University leadership and supervisors who believe in my abilities, advocate for resources for my development, and support my ideas. Without this level of support and trust, my trajectory into the next six years would be in a much different direction.”
Teaching Award, Rootstown-Based Faculty: Jesse Young, Ph.D.
For Dr. Jesse Young, a deep appreciation for NEOMED students drives him to be a strong teacher and mentor.
“Our students are brilliant, driven, excited and passionate about making the world a better place,” he said. “I love teaching NEOMED students, and it really is a privilege to work with them every day.”
“Dr. Young inspires students with his passion for anatomy and creative, memorable teaching methods,” noted Dr. Langell in presenting the award.
Dr. Young, a master teacher at NEOMED for more than 15 years, is a nationally respected anatomy scholar with nearly 70 publications and several editorial leadership positions. He is also responsible for transforming the course “Human Architecture and Composition” and “Body and Brain” to make them more clinically relevant and engaging to students.
He also strives to be an outstanding mentor to students, and has guided 40 trainees, with many going on to achieve publications and fellowships.
“The first key to being a good mentor is seeing each student as an individual. Everyone comes to the training experience with different talents and different needs,” said Dr. Young. “It’s important to get to know them – both their background and what makes them tick right now – to know what each student needs from me.”
He also values regular check-ins with mentees to learn about their research and what roadblocks they are facing – then using his experience to help the students get past the roadblocks.
“Mentoring is like parenting, where the ultimate goal is to set someone up to the point they don’t need you anymore,” he shared.
Teaching Award, Clinical Faculty: Thomas Mike, M.D.
Dr. Thomas Mike is credited for transforming the educational experience for second-year medicine students with the Diagnosis and Treatment course. Under his leadership, the course was reworked into a new model that balances high-yield, team-based learning with independent study.
“We gave flexibility for students to learn and study independently while focusing in-class time on interactive learning and case-based activities,” said Dr. Mike.
The changes helped improve both student satisfaction and performance on standardized tests.
Dr. Mike understands his role as course director for Diagnosis and Treatment plays a prominent role in the education of medical students.
“Excelling in your knowledge of disease helps you excel when you have a patient in front of you,” he said. “For me, this is the most fun part of being a physician – trying to solve a problem to help someone heal.”
Dr. Mike’s success as an educator has been recognized several times, including the Resident Teaching Award in 2020, the Golden Apple Award in 2022 and M2 Teacher of the Year in 2025, an honor for which he was selected by his students.
“Dr. Mike earns student ratings well above the faculty average and creates a respectful, welcoming learning environment,” said Dr. Langell in presenting the award.
Dr. Mike also understands the importance of being a strong mentor for students, as he once relied on mentors to help him launch a successful career in medicine.
“Mentorship is such a big part of how I got to where I am today,” said Dr. Mike. “Having a formal mentor – someone you meet with regularly – can help you get perspective and insight on problems as they arise and helps keep you on track throughout all stages of your career.”
As such a dedicated educator, it’s no surprise that Dr. Mike is being recognized with another honor.
“While I certainly didn’t pursue my career with the goal of winning awards, it’s nice to know that all of the hard work has been appreciated and valued,” said Dr. Mike. “I’m incredibly thankful to all my colleagues who worked with me through this new iteration of Diagnosis and Treatment and to the students who welcomed me here at NEOMED.”