On April 6, Ann Ricketts, assistant vice president for research in the University of Iowa's Office of Research & Economic Development, and Michelle Scherer, professor and departmental executive officer (DEO) in civil and environmental engineering, were honored as outstanding leaders at the annual UI Celebration of Excellence and Achievement Among Women.
The celebration recognized these two faculty/staff members and the recipients of the Jean Y. Jew Award, as well as eight University of Iowa students who have all demonstrated a dedication to scholarship, research, service, leadership, and activism.
Tonya Peeples, associate dean for diversity and outreach in the College of Engineering and professor in chemical and biochemical engineering, provided opening remarks.
Susan C. Buckley Distinguished Achievement Award for Staff
The Susan C. Buckley Distinguished Achievement Award for Staff recognizes an outstanding accomplishment or a lifetime record of service and achievement.
Ann Ricketts was nominated for her outstanding work guiding, mentoring, and advancing women on the UI campus, as well as in the surrounding community. Over the years, Ricketts has created a network of women who collaborate and mentor each other, establishing a better environment for others. Her work as a volunteer for the Iowa Women’s Foundation has helped improve the lives of Iowa’s women and girls through economic self-sufficiency.
In the last 22 years, Ricketts has helped many on campus better understand the grant-writing processes and funding opportunities that are crucial for research. She has worked tirelessly on important committees, including the Executive Committee of the APLU Council on Engagement and Outreach, University of Iowa International Programs Advisory Board, Advisory Board of the Obermann Center for Advanced Studies, and Steering Committee for the Iowa Center for Research by Undergraduates.
“Ann’s failing is always that she is too modest. What she doesn’t realize is that we all learn from her constantly. Ann works well with everyone, but for me and a number of other women leaders on campus, she is a model of the kind of generous, kind, smart, fair, witty, and creative leader we aspire to be,” notes one of her colleagues.
Another says, “As someone who advocates for the advancement of women, I must add here that Ann is an amazing role model. She’s a successful and highly accomplished woman who has achieved a great deal in a short time, working collaboratively and constructively to accomplish her goals—and always with an upbeat attitude and a lively sense of humor.”
May Brodbeck Distinguished Achievement Award for Faculty
Michelle Scherer was nominated for her outstanding work in her field of study, environmental engineering, and for providing exceptional mentorship to young scientists, as well as serving as a role model for women in academia. Her pioneering work in the field of environmental science recently resulted in her being invited to give the keynote talk at the Women in Environmental Science & Engineering ACS Presidential Event in 2014.
Scherer was selected by the undergraduate class of civil and environmental engineering to be recognized for excellence in teaching and dedication to student success in 2015. She has also received numerous awards for her research, including the Malcolm Pirnie Frontier in Research Award (2010), the Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors Distinguished Service Award (2009), and the University of Iowa’s College of Engineering Faculty Excellence Award for Research (2008), the Environmental Science & Technology Reviewer Award (2004), and a National Science Foundation CAREER Award (2000). She has served as a member of the EPA’s Environmental Engineering Scientific Advisory Board since 2014.
A colleague says, “Indeed, she recognizes how important it is for young women and men to see, interact with, and learn from a woman who is accomplished in engineering and serving as a leader in the college.”
A nominator describes Scherer as an outstanding mentor of young scientists and an exceptional role model for women in academia.
“Particularly for a woman in the still male-dominated field of engineering, it was decisive for me to experience Michelle as a role model successfully combining her research career and family life. If I ever had a doubt about my career path, Michelle is the role model that convinced me to stick with research and follow my passion and not sacrifice either career or family,” adds one of Scherer’s former postdocs.
Jean Y. Jew Award
The Jean Y. Jew Award is given annually by the Council on the Status of Women and the UI Women's Resource and Action Center, and honors a member of the UI community who has demonstrated outstanding effort or achievement in improving the status of women at the university.
This year’s recipients are Chandler Ackers, Jessy Silfer, Natalie Cafone, and Dani Hemeon.
Student achievements
Eight students were recognized with scholarships to honor their work and commitment to women’s issues, diversity and social activism.
- Jessica Pleyel, from Grand Rapids, Michigan, a graduate student in the School of Art and Art History with a certificate in gender, women’s, and sexuality studies in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences received the Adele Kimm Scholarship.
- Caroline Radesky, from Litiz, Pennsylvania, a graduate student in history with a certificate in gender, women’s, and sexuality studies in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, received the Jane A. Weiss Memorial Dissertation Scholarship.
- Azzah Nasraddin, from Iowa City, Iowa, an undergraduate in psychology with a certificate in critical cultural competency in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, received the Wynonna G. Hubbard Scholarship.
- Laurel Tuggle, from Ames, Iowa, a graduate student in community and behavioral health in the College of Public Health received the Margaret P. Benson Memorial Scholarship.
- DaVida Anderson, from York, Pennsylvania, a doctoral student in the higher education and student affairs in the College of Education received the Margaret P. Benson Memorial Scholarship.
- Fatima Jayoma, from Manila, the Philippines and Iowa City, Iowa, an undergraduate in the School of Social Work and gender, women’s, and sexuality studies in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, received the Adah Johnson/Otilia Maria Fernandez Scholarship.
- Alexandria Yakes, from Omaha, Nebraska, an undergraduate in political science and ethics and public policy in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, received the Kristin K. Lippke Memorial Scholarship.
- Benjamin Marks, from Waterloo, Iowa an undergraduate in journalism; gender, women’s, and sexuality studies; and engaged social innovation in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences received the Kristin K. Lippke Memorial Scholarship.