This year marks the 90th anniversary of the Mr. Frankie Award at the University.
The Mr. and Ms. Frankie Awards are presented annually at the President’s Awards Convocation each April. The awards recognize one male and one female student who embody leadership, service and the spirit of campus life.
The award is more than a campus honor. It reflects the people who shape the University and carry its values beyond graduation.
Randall Frye was named Mr. Frankie in 2018. He currently serves as Engagement and Stewardship Manager in the Office of Advancement.
Frye believes that the awards represent something larger than the recognition of two members of the senior class each year.
“It’s one of the only traditions that link us back to 1936,” Frye said.
The Mr. Frankie Award was introduced that year. The winner was determined by a popularity vote conducted by the campus newspaper.
Gerald Cessna was the inaugural Mr. Frankie winner, capturing the award as a junior (the rules were later changed so that only seniors are eligible for the award).
Cessna went on to win the award again in 1937, becoming the only two-time Mr. Frankie. The award was not presented in 1944 and 1945 due to World War II.
The Ms. Frankie Award was introduced in 1962 and Gail (Muir) Morreale became the first recipient.
For Frye, the spirit of these awards extends beyond the recipients themselves and into the broader identity of the University.
“Special students, faculty and staff find their way here,” Frye said. “Whether it be the four years a student spends here, or the service of a faculty or staff member over decades, special people find their way to Loretto.”
Frye said that the sense of community at Saint Francis has remained consistent across generations.
