Weitzman Museum Chair Emeritus Phil Darivoff, Weitzman Co-Chairs Sharon Tobin Kestenbaum and Mark Oster, former U.S. ambassador to Canada David L. Cohen, Penn President Larry Jameson, former ambassador to Germany and former Penn president Dr. Amy Gutmann, Weitzman Museum President & CEO Dan Tadmor, Museum namesake Stuart Weitzman, NBC News Chief Washington Correspondent Andrea Mitchell, and Chair of the Penn Board of Trustees Ramanan Raghavendran. (Photo credit: Chris Brown, Shoot From Within)
The Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History honored Dr. Amy Gutmann with the 2025 Only in America Award at their annual gala on Nov. 5 in recognition of Gutmann’s personal story and lifelong achievements.
Gutmann’s family escaped Nazi Germany in the 1930s and she became the first member of her family to graduate from college before launching an esteemed academic career that led her to serve as the president of the University of Pennsylvania for 18 years. Gutmann also served as the U.S. ambassador to Germany from 2022 to 2024.
The Only in America Award is considered the museum’s signature award, which recognizes “the achievements and contributions of American Jews who have significantly impacted American society and culture, often despite facing antisemitism and prejudice.”
Gutmann joins a list of notable recent award recipients that includes former Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig, CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer, the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the late Philadelphia Flyers owner Ed Snider, and many more.
The award takes its name from the Only in America Gallery/Hall of Fame in the museum. The gallery highlights “stories that represent the pinnacle of American freedom,” and features exhibits on prominent Jewish Americans like Louis Brandeis, Albert Einstein, Sandy Koufax, Steven Spielberg, Barbra Streisand and Jonas Salk, among many others.
“I am deeply honored to receive the Weitzman’s Only in America Award recognizing the rich and resilient story of Jewish Americans — a story that is also my own,” Gutmann said ahead of the event. “My father fled Nazi Germany in 1934, seeking refuge from Nazi persecution and ultimately finding hope in the promise of freedom in America.
“His journey, like so many others, is a testament to the strength, perseverance, and enduring contributions of Jewish Americans to our nation’s fabric, and it has deeply influenced my entire career,” the former ambassador added. “To share and elevate these stories is not only a privilege — it is a responsibility. By remembering and honoring our past, we light the way forward. We do so at a time when understanding Jewish history and experience is more essential than ever.”
In the academic field, Gutmann made her name as a prize-winning scholar who has written over a dozen books, becoming both the first female Jewish president of Penn and the university’s longest-serving president.
As the first member of her family to graduate college, Gutmann spent her presidential tenure committed to affordable access to education and healthcare.
As president, Gutmann doubled the school’s enrollment for low-income or first-generation college students.
During those 18 years, Gutmann raised over $10 billion for the school and its endowment increased from $4 billion to $20 billion, with a significant portion of that money going toward student financial aid.
Gutmann is also recognized for her career track record of being outspoken for Israel, combating antisemitism, emphasizing Holocaust remembrance and pushing for people to be tolerant and respectful.
As an ambassador, she worked to strengthen the U.S.-German relationship on several issues, including supporting Ukraine against Russia’s invasion, increasing trade and resistance against extremism.
Those efforts included launching U.S. Mission Germany’s “Stand Up, Speak Out” campaign, which worked with various organizations to combat hate and prejudice.
“Amy Gutmann’s story is deeply personal, powerfully American, and profoundly Jewish. Her career is a masterclass in visionary leadership, fierce intellect, and moral courage,” said event chair David L. Cohen. “From leading one of America’s greatest universities to representing our nation in Germany, she has consistently elevated dialogue, advanced equity, and honored her heritage. She embodies the very ideals the Only in America Award was created to celebrate, and it has been my privilege to work so closely together with her to benefit humanity.”
“Dr. Gutmann is a force for good in the world,” said Dan Tadmor, Weitzman president and CEO. “She is a friend of Israel and the Jewish American community. She is deeply connected to Philadelphia, while taking a national and global approach to her work. As one of the most thoughtful and effective Jewish leaders in America today, it’s our honor to bestow her with the Only in America Award.”