ESF Alumni Association to Honor 2026 Graduates of Distinction During Fall Fest: Homecoming and Family Weekend

09/22/2026

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Sept. 23, 2026 – The ESF Alumni Association has named three outstanding graduates as recipients of its 2026 Graduates of Distinction awards, recognizing alumni whose professional achievements, leadership, and service embody the mission and spirit of the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF).

The honorees will be formally recognized during the ESF Awards Dinner Sept. 25 as part of Fall Fest: Homecoming & Family Weekend. For the first time, the event will be open to the public, creating an opportunity for alumni, students, campus partners, and community members to celebrate the accomplishments of these distinguished graduates and their contributions to environmental stewardship, planning, and conservation.

The annual Graduates of Distinction program honors alumni whose contributions have made a meaningful and lasting impact on their professions, communities, and the environment. This year's honorees represent excellence across natural resource management, community planning, and urban forestry.

The 2026 recipients are:

• Lewis H. "Lew" Payne RS ’81/'84, recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award
• Sam Gordon, AICP '97, '01, '05, recipient of the Notable Achievement Award
• Sarah Welz '18, recipient of the Incipiens Quercu (Beginning Oak) Award

“These exceptional alumni demonstrate the far-reaching impact of an ESF education,” said ESF President Joanie Mahoney. “Through their leadership, innovation, and commitment to service, they are helping create stronger communities, healthier ecosystems, and a more resilient future.”

Lewis H. "Lew" Payne Ranger School ’81/ FRM '84

Lifetime Achievement Award

For more than four decades, Payne has helped transform the utility industry's approach to land stewardship and biodiversity conservation. A recognized pioneer in integrated vegetation management, he has led efforts to manage utility rights-of-way as valuable wildlife habitat while maintaining safe and reliable energy infrastructure.

As right-of-way and environmental manager for the New York Power Authority, Payne oversees 24,000 acres of transmission corridors and has been instrumental in advancing habitat-focused management practices throughout North America. Under his leadership, NYPA became one of the first utilities on the continent to earn accreditation as a Right-of-Way Steward Utility.

Payne also helped position NYPA as a national leader in pollinator conservation through participation in the federal Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances for the monarch butterfly. His decades of advocacy, education, and professional leadership have influenced utility corridor management across millions of acres and helped establish new standards for ecological stewardship.

Sam Gordon, AICP '97, '01, '05

Notable Achievement Award

Gordon is being recognized for a distinguished 26-year career dedicated to community planning, environmental sustainability, and public service throughout Central and Upstate New York.

Holding three degrees from ESF, Gordon has led planning initiatives that have strengthened neighborhoods, advanced clean-energy strategies, and supported regional growth. His early work with the city of Syracuse helped shape neighborhood revitalization efforts through the Syracuse Neighborhood Initiative, while his time with the Central New York Regional Planning and Development Board helped communities pursue energy efficiency and climate resilience projects.

Today, Gordon leads the planning practice at Environmental Design & Research, D.P.C. (EDR), overseeing projects across Upstate New York. Among his recent accomplishments is leadership of Plan ONondaga, the county's award-winning comprehensive plan, which outlines a vision for future growth while protecting natural resources and improving quality of life.

Beyond his professional achievements, Gordon has dedicated significant time to community service through leadership roles with numerous nonprofit and professional organizations, including the ESF College Foundation Board of Directors.

Sarah Welz '18

Incipiens Quercu (Beginning Oak) Award

Welz has emerged as one of Tennessee's most influential early-career urban forestry professionals since graduating from ESF in 2018 with a degree in Conservation Biology.

As urban forestry project manager for Metro Nashville and Davidson County, Welz oversees large-scale tree planting initiatives that are expanding the city's urban forest and improving access to green space. During the 2024-25 planting season alone, she coordinated the planting of 903 trees and continues to play a key role in Root Nashville, an public-private campaign to plant 500,000 trees by 2050.

Her work combines science, technology, and community engagement. Welz manages Nashville's GIS-based tree tracking system, supports urban canopy studies, and prioritizes tree planting in neighborhoods disproportionately affected by urban heat. She also serves as president of the Tennessee Urban Forestry Council and is active in statewide forestry initiatives.

In recognition of her leadership and impact, Welz received the 2025 Tennessee Urban Forestry Council Government Employee Award of Excellence.

“One of the greatest privileges of our work is seeing ESF alumni take the values they developed here and turn them into meaningful action,” said Erin Robideau director of alumni and donor relations. “Whether restoring habitat, strengthening communities, or expanding urban forests, this year's honorees are improving lives and creating lasting positive change. We are proud to celebrate their accomplishments and grateful for the example they set for current and future ESF students.”

Each year, the ESF Alumni Association's Graduates of Distinction program recognizes alumni whose accomplishments, leadership, and service reflect the values of the College. The awards honor graduates whose careers exemplify excellence and whose work continues to make a positive difference in their professions and communities.

Learn more about ESF’s Graduates of Distinction here.

About SUNY ESF  

The SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry is one of the nation's premier colleges focused on the study of the environment, developing renewable technologies, and building a sustainable future. ESF’s mission is to educate future environmental leaders of all backgrounds, advance knowledge, and skills necessary to promote scholarship and stewardship of the natural to designed environments, and act both locally and globally to Improve Our World. ESF’s students, faculty, staff, and alumni make a global impact on improving and sustaining the environment. ESF offers a world-class education among a close-knit community of more than 2,000 scholars with common values and a shared sense of purpose. ESF’s tight-knit community is centered alongside Syracuse University in the heart of Central New York and has a system of properties spanning 25,000 acres that broadly represent New York state’s rich ecological diversity for scientific study and instruction. To learn more, visit suny.edu.