Dean Emeritus and University Professor John Palmer has been recognized with the Maxwell School’s highest honor, the Cramer Horizon Award. The award was presented earlier this fall by Dean David M. Van Slyke at a ceremony in Eggers Hall that drew an audience of faculty, staff, students, alumni and Maxwell Advisory Board members.

Palmer joined Maxwell in 1988 as its seventh dean. Prior to assuming the deanship, he held several different positions in Washington, D.C., including senior fellow of The Brookings Institution and of The Urban Institute and assistant secretary for planning and evaluation in the Department of Health and Human Services.

“Let me just say how much I do appreciate this award,” Palmer told the gathering assembled in Strasser Commons. “I don’t have to tell all of you how special a place this is. But I hope you do understand that it’s only special because of the efforts and contributions all of you and people like you have made to support the school in various ways through the years, and I hope you will take as much pleasure in playing that role as I have taken with my association with the school over the past 37 years.”

Palmer served 15 years as dean and 16 years as a University Professor until his retirement in 2019. He also served two presidentially appointed terms as a public trustee for the Medicare and Social Security programs (2000-07). Since his retirement, he has served on the Maxwell Advisory Board and has continued to contribute his expertise, counsel and philanthropy to promote the school’s mission through a host of actions, which include creating student fellowships, endowed professorships and supporting the John L. and Stephanie G. Palmer Career Center to name a few.

Embodying the Maxwell Mission

“John Palmer did not just lead Maxwell, he did not just teach at Maxwell—he became Maxwell,” said Van Slyke at the ceremony. “He embodies the school’s mission of preparing citizens to address the great public challenges of their time.”

“When I look at what John has created­—the academic programs, the endowed funds, the named professorships, the career center—I see a man who understood something very essential: That institutions are built not by individuals, but by individuals who invest in other individuals,” said Van Slyke. “Every Palmer Fellow, every McClure Professor, every student who receives career counseling in the Palmer Career Center is a testament to John’s belief that excellence and access must go hand in hand.”

It was under Palmer’s leadership that the Maxwell School was first recognized by U.S. News and World Report as the top graduate program for public affairs. He also oversaw the addition of Eggers Hall to the Maxwell complex, secured major grants for the national security program and for undergraduate curriculum, including working with Professor Emeritus Robert McClure, then an associate dean, to create the MAX courses which have helped foster citizenship and civic engagement for thousands of Syracuse University students.

Leadership and Philanthropic Commitment

The Cramer Horizon Award recognizes alumni, supporters and friends for their wise, inspirational leadership and exceptional philanthropic commitment. Originally the Horizon Award, it was renamed in 2018 to honor Life Trustee Gerald B. Cramer ’52, H’10 and his wife, Daphna, who are among the most generous and influential supporters in Maxwell history. Gerald Cramer, a graduate of the Whitman School, gifted Maxwell nearly $10 million over three decades; his philanthropy was often driven by his interest in a world problem or policy issue.

“The Horizon Award recognizes those whose vision extends beyond the present, whose generosity creates opportunities for people they will never meet, and whose leadership transforms institutions for decades to come,” Van Slyke concluded. “And that’s precisely what John Palmer has done.”

Palmer has published 13 books and many professional and popular articles on a wide range of topics related to economic, budgetary and social policy concerns, and he won an award for teaching excellence at the graduate level in the Maxwell School. Palmer also provided expert testimony to Congress on numerous occasions and served as a consultant to various government agencies, private foundations and universities. He is a senior fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration and former president of the National Academy of Social Insurance.