The University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) is celebrating major wins in the 2025 President’s Excellence Awards. Gina Ligon, Ph.D., director of the National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology, and Education Center (NCITE), and the Goodrich Scholarship Program both received top honors recognizing innovation, leadership, and student success.
Ligon, who also serves as the Jack and Stephanie Koraleski Professor in UNO’s College of Business Administration, was awarded the Innovation, Development and Engagement Award. Since arriving at UNO, she has secured more than $50 million in extramural funding for national security research and connected over 11,200 attendees through NCITE’s demonstrations, conferences, and events. Her work has positioned UNO as a national leader in counterterrorism and homeland defense research, influencing policy while bridging the gap between academia and real-world security challenges.
The Goodrich Scholarship Program was recognized with the Innovations in Student Success Award. For more than 50 years, the program has provided financial aid, academic support, and mentorship to Nebraska students, boasting an 85 percent graduation rate. With more than 3,800 graduates, 80 percent of whom remain in Nebraska, the program has had a transformative impact on access to higher education and long-term community development.
“This award is a testament to what we can accomplish at UNO when we connect cutting-edge research with real-world needs. I’m proud that our work in Omaha is driving innovation in national security and defense and making a difference far beyond our campus,” said Gina Ligon, Ph.D.
(AI was used in part to facilitate this article.)