City of Aliquippa Mayor Dwan B. Walker, center, accepts the 2026 Mayor of the Year award from Jim Nowalk, right, president of the Pennsylvania State Mayors’ Association and Scot Funk, left, chairman of the Mayor of the Year selection committee.
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Pennsylvania’s 2026 Mayor of the Year is from Beaver County.
Aliquippa Mayor Dwan B. Walker received the award in July from the Pennsylvania State Mayors’ Association, and a second presentation was made at the Oct. 7 Aliquippa Council meeting.
Jim Nowalk, mayor of Whitehall in Allegheny County and president of the mayors’ association, described Walker as a “tireless advocate for his city” who “has brought pride and prestige to his community and city.”
“He works at every city-wide clean up and recycling event, volunteers at other city events, promotes transparency in all financial transactions, has an open-door policy to all city residents, and works to build close community ties among city residents through respect for all, a firm approach to crime prevention and mitigation and a commitment to ‘One Aliquippa, All Hands on Deck,'” Nowalk said in his remarks.
‘It’s about the people you serve’
Walker, a lifelong Aliquippa resident, became mayor in 2012 and is the first Black mayor in the city’s history. His greatest achievement, according to a biography posted at the mayors’ association website, has been to “rebuild the City of Aliquippa by bringing job training, social services, new businesses and corporate partnerships to the city” through a $3.3 million revitalization grant awarded in 2018 through the state Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED).
That work helped to pull the city out of its 36-year Act 47 ‘financially distressed’ status in 2023, according to the biography.
Walker was “deeply honored and humbled” to receive the 2026 Pennsylvania Mayor of the Year award, he said in an email to The Times.
(The award) means more to me than words can express. This award isn’t just mine – it belongs to everyone who believed in me, prayed for me, encouraged me, challenged me and stood by my side throughout this journey,” he said.
“This recognition reminds me that true leadership is not about the title you hold – it’s about the people you serve, the lives you impact and the difference you make when you choose to keep showing up. I accept this award with humility, gratitude and a renewed commitment to serve with faith, purpose and integrity.”
Walker also is employed as borough manager for Midland, according to his LinkedIn page.
How the Mayor of the Year is chosen
The Mayor of the Year, Nowalk said, is chosen by a seven-person committee from the mayors’ association. Each year’s slate of nominees includes one mayor from each of the six DCED regions in Pennsylvania and one additional mayor. The Mayor of the Year committee then reviews the nominees and makes the final selection.
Nominations for the 2027 Mayor of the Year award will open in April; more details and a nomination form are posted under the Mayor of the Year tab at the Pennsylvania State Mayors’ Association website.
“The PSMA is the largest association of mayors in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” Nowalk said. “It is an organization of mayors, by mayors and for mayors. It represents, educates and advocates for all Pennsylvania mayors.
“The greatest honor that anyone invoved in any endeavor can receive – whether that endeavor is in business, the nonprofit sector or government is to be recognized by his/her peers. Who knows better what it takes to be great than those intimately involved with the endeavor.”
This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: This Beaver County man is PA’s 2026 Mayor of the Year
Reporting by Beth Ann Miller, Beaver County Times / Beaver County Times
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This story was originally published October 10, 2026 at 5:06 AM.