With a mission to educate women to lead and influence, St. Catherine University is proud to highlight the caliber of its students, faculty and staff as exemplified in the projects and activities they organize and support. The University is well-represented at the 2021 Iowa & Minnesota Campus Compact (IAMNCC) awards, a program that honors almost 90 individuals and organizations whose accomplishments exemplify and celebrate the public purpose at the heart of higher education, nominated by 27 of IAMNCC’s member campuses.
Presidents’ Awards recognize outstanding contributions in civic and community engagement by students, faculty, staff, collaborative teams, and community organizations on individual member campuses. For St. Catherine University, President Becky Roloff ’76 presented the following awards:
The Presidents’ Student Leadership Award is given to an individual student or a student organization that models a deep commitment to civic responsibility and leadership, evidenced by initiative, innovative and collaborative approaches to addressing public issues, effective community building, and integration of civic engagement into the college experience. Kieu My Phi ’22 is a Public Policy major, with minors in Economics and Nonprofit Strategies/Operation, and will complete her Master of Public Health in 2022. She is an exceptional leader, contributing energy and talent both on and off campus through civic engagement, collaborative research, internships, club involvement, and more.
The Presidents’ Civic Engagement Leadership Award is for a member of the faculty, administration, or staff or for a group (e.g., advisory committee, task force, project team) that has significantly advanced their campus’ distinctive civic mission by forming strong partnerships, supporting others’ civic and community engagement, and working to institutionalize a culture and practice of engagement. As the US marked the , St. Kate’s utilized this moment to explore the amendment’s tensions and diverse narratives, working with Twin Cities Public Television’s staff on the documentary , and MN History Center’s Extraordinary Women exhibit. Many faculty, staff, students participated through courses, the co-curriculum and our campus-wide Integrated Learning Series.
The Presidents’ Community Partner Award is for a community-based individual or organization that has enhanced the quality of life in the community in meaningful and measurable ways and has engaged in the development of sustained, reciprocal partnerships with the college or university, thus enriching educational as well as community outcomes. The Women’s Prison Book Project works “to build connections with those behind the walls, and educate on the realities of prison / justice system.” Informed by WPBP members, 10 service-learning courses wrote 800+ letters to incarcerated individuals, analyzed letters written back, and was part of St. Kate’s One Read for Racial Justice.
Iowa & Minnesota Campus Compact (IAMNCC) is a network of 59 member colleges and universities committed to strengthening the capacity for civic engagement and campus-community partnership in the service of fulfilling the public purposes at the heart of higher education.