2012 Award Recipient
The Villanova University Ethics Program of the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences has announced the recipient of its sixth annual Praxis Award in Professional Ethics. The 2012 Praxis Award recipient is Andrew Kricun, P.E., executive director of the Camden County Municipal Utilities Authority (CCMUA) (press release).
Andrew Kricun was selected for his extraordinary commitment to the health, welfare and safety of the neighbors of this waste water treatment plant in the Waterfront South community of Camden, N.J.
“The professional engineer has a commitment to hold paramount the health, welfare and safety of the public,” said Mark Doorley, Ph.D., Director of the Ethics Program and chair of the Praxis Selection Committee. “Mr. Kricun exemplifies that commitment in his long-standing and ongoing activities to create a healthy and sustainable environment in the neighborhood in which his waste water treatment plant sits.
“Mr. Kricun understands his professional responsibility to include not only attention to the operations of his facility, but also to enhancing the environmental health of the entire city of Camden,” added Doorley. “It is his demonstrated commitment to moral excellence in his profession as an engineer that merits Mr. Kricun this honor.”
After arriving at the Camden CCMUA plant as an engineer, Kricun immediately began working to remedy the unhealthy byproducts of waste-water treatment. In July 2011, CCMUA began a new process whereby the waste water effluent is now completely dehydrated. The process has reduced the plant’s odors by 99.9 percent.
Kricun is involved in various environmentally sustainable initiatives in the city of Camden. He has been instrumental in pushing for the creation of multiple rain water gardens that can reduce pressure on the city’s aging sewer system in times of heavy rain and reduce the flooding of sewage due to that heavy rain. In addition, Kricun was a founder of the Waterfront South Environmental Network that monitors the polluting industries in this low-income neighborhood.
Beyond the environment, Kricun also served on Camden’s public safety committee, helping the City to obtain funding for its Eyes in the Sky program, placing security cameras at key points around the city. He is now working with the City on the current lighting problem, as street lights are being vandalized for their copper wiring. Additionally, Kricun has committed the CCMUA to restoring the lights in the Waterfront South neighborhood and is assisting the City in finding sponsors for other neighborhoods.
The award reception will be on Wednesday, April 11, 2012, starting at 5:00 p.m. in the Villanova Room of the Connelly Center (the award presentation will begin at 5:30 p.m.).
What is the Praxis Award?
The Ethics Program of the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences inaugurated the Praxis Award in Professional Ethics on March 28, 2007. This award highlights and celebrates the contributions of a professional or an academic in the field of professional ethics. To be considered, a nominee need not fulfill all of the criteria listed below. Recognizing excellence in one or more of these areas, however, is the objective of the award.
A nominee should demonstrate evidence of excellence by:
- Embodying the ethical ideals of a particular profession
- Connecting work in a profession to a broader understanding of the common good
- Promoting ethical integrity in a professional field
- Conducting research in the field of professional ethics
- Influencing the field of professional ethics in a positive manner through writing, teaching, consulting, and/or professional leadership
