Harcum College celebrated the achievements of three esteemed individuals during the Circle of Excellence Dinner held in Klein Hall on Friday, Oct. 4. Over 100 guests attended the event, hosted by President Jon Jay DeTemple and First Lady Margi DeTemple.

This year, in memory of Harcum’s loyal Trustee Louise Strauss (1960-2024), the Circle of Excellence Award was renamed The Strauss Memorial Circle of Excellence Award. In addition to this award, Outstanding Alumna and Outstanding Young Alumnus Awards were also presented. Introduced in 2019, the Circle of Excellence Award celebrates Harcum College’s most generous donors, specifically recognizing individuals who have contributed $50,000 or more. This year, the Award was presented to Dr. Alexander Klein, who has served on numerous nonprofit boards over the past 35 years and is a third-generation Klein to serve on the Harcum Board of Trustees. Since 2007, Klein has dedicated countless hours to the College, including a five-year term as Board Chair. He has also served as Vice Chair, Board Secretary, Chair of the Academic Affairs and Trusteeship Committees, and as a Standards Chair for the 2025 Middle States Commission on Higher Education reaccreditation. Klein prides himself on his devotion to his family, his work, and his volunteer efforts. He is a graduate of George Washington University and Temple University, most recently earning his doctoral degree in Business Administration with a research focus on nonprofit boards.

The Outstanding Alumna Award was conferred upon Jessica Jean-Burton ’17, the Executive Director and CEO of Nurturing Smiles, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing dental care and oral health education to underserved communities. She graduated from Harcum College in 2017 with an associate in Dental Hygiene. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Biology from Lincoln University and her MPA in Nonprofit Health Management from DeVry University: Keller School of Business Management. Jean-Burton has been recognized for her outstanding achievements and service. She was named “Today’s RDH Hygienist of the Year” in 2022 and “Incisal Edge Magazine Hygienist of the Year” in 2023. She is a proud member of the Harcum College Dental Hygiene Advisory Committee and has served since March 2024.

Harcum College Nursing graduate Jaron Burch ’23 was honored with the Outstanding Alumnus Award. After completing his studies at Harcum, he earned a bachelor’s degree in Nursing from Capella University and is currently pursuing a master’s in Nursing at Walden University, with an expected graduation in November 2025. Since July 2023, Burch has been working as a full-time Nurse Resident and Perioperative Clinical Nurse 1 at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. He is a member of several professional organizations, including the National Black Nurses Association, the Pennsylvania Nurse Practitioner Association, the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, and the American Association of Nurse Practitioners– Acute Care NP Committee.

Harcum College continues to champion the successes of its community and is proud to honor these individuals who exemplify the college’s commitment to excellence, service, and leadership.

Learn more at Harcum College. Founded in 1915 as the first college in Pennsylvania authorized to grant associate degrees, Harcum College is a private, residential institution located in Bryn Mawr, a suburb of Philadelphia. Harcum provides both traditional and non-traditional students with outstanding academic, career, and life preparation in an experiential environment utilizing a wide variety of modalities and technology taught by credentialed and experienced faculty. Offering over twenty majors in the allied health sciences, art and design, business, and social sciences fields, courses are taught at Harcum’s Bryn Mawr campus, at partnership sites, and online. Certificate programs, non-credit courses, and professional development programs are also offered.