Melissa Maher and Sarah Troy-Petrakos receive the 2025 Daniel D. Federman Staff Award for Exceptional Service to HMS and HSDM

The 2025 Daniel D. Federman Staff Award for Exceptional Service to Harvard Medical School (HMS) and Harvard School of Dental Medicine (HSDM) was presented to Melissa Maher and Sarah Troy-Petrakos on February 26, 2026 during the HMS Town Hall Meeting.

Maher is the Associate Director of Grants and Contracts, in the Office of Research Administration at HMS.  Her exceptional service at Harvard spans more than 10 years, touching people, policies, systems, and cultures in lasting ways. Maher founded and leads a university-wide group, "Harvard Employees Parenting Children with Disabilities," comprised of more than 50 employees who parent children with special needs. She organizes regular meetings, maintains a rich online gathering space, and coordinates expert presentations, creating not just a resource hub, but a community where members feel seen and supported. Colleagues describe her as their “leader and champion,” and credit her with building understanding and autism awareness across Harvard.

Maher actively promotes inclusive practices by championing trainings like “Embracing Neurodiversity” and encouraging participation in accessibility-focused campus events. As a manager, she leads with care, trust, and fairness, offering flexibility and supporting work–life balance. She invests in her team’s professional growth and ensures they receive meaningful recognition. Her staff describe her as a principled, action-oriented leader who creates an atmosphere where everyone is welcome to be themselves. In her role as a research administrator, Maher has strengthened Harvard Medical School’s research enterprise and broader University practices through tools, processes, policies, committees, system improvements, and professional engagement that enhance both internal operations and Harvard’s standing in the wider research community.

Sarah Troy-Petrakos is the Director of Admissions in the Office of Dental Education at HSDM. Troy-Petrakos’s exceptional service has transformed both HSDM’s admissions processes and the character of its community. For more than a decade, she has brought unwavering dedication, insight, and compassion to her role, redefining the admissions process. As Director of Admissions and Chair of the Admissions Committee, she led a fundamental shift to holistic review by developing structured rubrics that elevate lived experience, commitment to service, and alignment with HSDM’s patient-centered mission. She also implemented interviewer training to support fair, data-informed decisions, contributing to a significant increase in applications over just two cycles and a richer pool of future oral health leaders. Her vision extends across the Longwood campus through strong cross-school partnerships, aligned HMS/HSDM recruitment messaging, and generous collaboration with other admissions leaders, while nationally she represents HSDM at conferences, and builds partnerships with institutions.

Perhaps most remarkable is Troy-Petrakos’s personal engagement with students. Through the Office of Dental Education, she mentors countless pre-dental and first-generation students, many of whom later say she was their deciding factor in choosing HSDM. She created and oversees the DMD Pathways Outreach Program, which connects students and alumni with prospective applicants through webinars, Q&As, and regional visits, further strengthening HSDM’s pipeline and community. Colleagues describe her as “the glue that holds so many parts of our community together.” 

The 2025 Daniel D. Federman Staff Award honors Melissa Maher and Sarah Troy-Petrakos for their leadership in fostering inclusive community, strengthening research and admissions systems, and deeply supporting students, families, and colleagues across Harvard Medical School and Harvard School of Dental Medicine.