President's Commission on the Status of University Women Award

This award has evolved into the President's Award for Gender Equity. Please visit this link to see the information about the PAGE award.

Montana State University is pleased to announce the call for nominations for the President’s Commission on the Status of University Women Award. This award is designed to honor an individual (faculty or staff leader) who has established a record of working to improve issues related to gender, equity, and diversity on any of MSU’s four campuses. 

Nominations can be made by submitting the candidate’s name and a short narrative (maximum of three to four sentences) to the Recognition Committee Chair, Betsy Danforth at: danforth@montana.edu.  You may also submit a nomination from the Office of the Provost's Awards page at http://www.montana.edu/provost/faculty/awards.html

Recognition 
The award recipient is recognized at MSU’s Spring Convocation ceremony. 

Award Recipients

This award is given to a member of the faculty or staff who has established a record of working to improve issues related to gender, equity and diversity on any of MSU's four campuses.

2021 Rebecca Belou

Rebecca Belou, senior data scientist in the Office of Planning and Analysis, has won the 2021 President's Commission on the Status of University Women Award. The award has an honorarium of $2,000.

Belou was hired as a research analyst in 2012 with part of her time dedicated as an equity analyst with MSU’s ADVANCE Project TRACS grant. Since then, Belou has developed, maintained and grown MSU’s analysis around issues related to gender and racial equity, diversity, and inclusion for students, staff and faculty. Her nominators say that by celebrating women and making information both accessible and useful, Belou has made gender equity issues more visible and shown effective policy and strategy solutions for addressing them.

Learn more about Rebecca Belou

Read about all of the 2021 awardees

In 2020, Alanna Sherstad, director of the VOICE Center, has been named the recipient of the President’s Commission on the Status of University Women Award, which honors a member of the faculty or staff who has established a record of working to improve issues related to gender, equity and diversity on any of MSU’s four campuses. The award comes with a $2,000 honorarium.

In a pivotal role in the VOICE Center, Sherstad has spent her time advocating for survivors of interpersonal violence and marginalized communities, as well as helping empower and shape future leaders of diversity. In an office of more than 60 student volunteers, Sherstad has proven herself to be a compassionate leader and mentor and, in one volunteer’s words, helped them “grow into responsible, conscientious adults on campus.”

Sherstad goes above and beyond the requirements of her position and has helped the VOICE Center reach new heights of success by re-establishing its 24-hour support and information line, training and managing record numbers of volunteers, and gaining statewide recognition for the creation of the Not In Our House campaign and Not In Our State summit.

Read about all the 2020 awardees

In 2019, Chatanika "Nika" Stoop won the President’s Commission on the Status of University Women Award. As part of MSU’s ADVANCE Project TRACS and then research resources coordinator in the Center for Faculty Excellence, Stoop has spent her career working to improve gender equity and diversity at MSU. Since she arrived on the MSU campus, Stoop has become known for her ability to organize complex projects with creativity and grace. Her work training faculty on the grant-writing and submission process has enhanced the research capacity among women and other junior faculty in STEM fields. Another example is her work as one of the organizers of the recent 125 Extraordinary Ordinary Women event, which was a part of MSU’s 125th anniversary celebration. Stoop displayed leadership, commitment, dedication, drive and an ability to stay calm under pressure, which made the Extraordinary Ordinary Woman celebration a success. Her work on behalf of women at MSU has been groundbreaking and will be long-lasting as MSU embarks on its next 125 years.

Read about all of the 2019 awardees

In 2018, Sara Rushing, associate professor of political science, received the President’s Commission on the Status of University Women Award given to a member of the faculty or staff who has established a record of working to improve issues related to gender, equity and diversity on any of MSU's four campuses. Rushing is a political theorist whose work focuses on the intersection of ethics and politics. At MSU, she has worked in a number of formal and informal ways to improve conditions for women at MSU and ensure gender diversity, equity and inclusion on campus. As a professor, her coursework weaves in both feminism and inclusivity. As a researcher, she employs feminist, queer and democratic theory to analyze questions of power, participation and identity. Her service work has included serving as co-director of the ADVANCE Project TRACS Institutional Transformation grant, serving as a past chair of the Women’s Faculty Caucus and serving on the women’s, gender and sexuality studies minor committee. As one of MSU’s family advocates, she has put in countless hours to help promote a more work-life friendly campus environment and support students, faculty and staff through family-related life transitions. She has served as the faculty adviser for the Queer Straight Alliance student organization. Rushing is currently at work on a book, “Sites of Political Awakening: Embodiment, Vulnerability and Citizen-Subjectivity.”

Read about all of the 2018 awardees

In 2017, Ian Handley, associate professor of psychology, received the President’s Commission on the Status of University Women Award given to a member of the faculty or staff who has established a record of working to improve issues related to gender, equity and diversity on any of MSU's four campuses. As the co-lead for the ADVANCE Cultural Attunement team, Handley has overseen the development of the search toolkit, the nomination process for the women in science award, and the equity advocate selection/training and implementation. As the graduate program coordinator for MSU’s doctoral program in psychological science, Handley also is attuned to issues of inclusion, and he respects the unique barriers that women graduate students may face. In addition, as a professor who teaches a required 200-level undergraduate course in statistics and research methods, as well as a more advanced graduate course in statistics, colleagues say Handley helps female students to see the utility and relevance of the material, as well as to enjoy and excel as they learn it.

In 2016, Anne Camper, Montana University System Regents Professor, professor in the MSU Department of Civil Engineering and associate dean for faculty administration in the College of Engineering, received the President's Commission on the Status of University Women Award. Camper has a proven record of working to improve issues related to gender, equity and diversity. She was the first chair of the President’s Commission on the Status of University Women and helped develop the commission’s vision for a successful future. Camper is also known for achieving excellence in research, teaching and service while simultaneously breaking down gender barriers. An international expert on water and biofilms, Camper is the first woman at MSU and the first faculty member in MSU’s College of Engineering to be selected as a regents professor. Also in 2013, she was selected as a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, who are selected for their outstanding contributions to innovation in areas such as patents and licensing, innovative discovery and technology, significant impact on society and support and enhancement of innovation. She also served as MSU’s interim Vice President for Research, Creativity and Technology Transfer in 2013.

In 2015, Ariel Donohue, Program Manager of the Diversity Awareness Office, was awarded the President's Commission on the Status of University Women Award. This award includes a $2,000 honorarium. Donohue is passionate about creating supportive communities, working with students and promoting and embracing diversity in all forms. Donohue singlehandedly secured a a 2014 Higher Education Excellence in Diversity Award (HEED Award) from INSIGHT Into Diversity Magazine, the oldest and largest diversity-focused publication in higher education. Donohue continues to pursue collaborative efforts with departments across campus and oversee a plethora of diversity focused events each year. Donohue is a critical member of events like the Martin Luther King Day Lecture and events, National Coming Out Day events, Holocaust Remembrance Day, and the International Food Bazaar. 

In 2014, Jessi Smith, psychology, received the President's Commission on the Status of University Women Award given to a member of the faculty or staff who has established a record of working to improve issues related to gender, equity and diversity on any of MSU's four campuses. The award includes a $2,000 honorarium.

Smith is the principal investigator of a $3.4 million NSF ADVANCE grant that is broadening the participation of women faculty members at MSU and has been instrumental to many campus innovations that improved the lives of both men and women at MSU. Her service aligns with her own research that focuses on motivation, goals and stereotypes as they relate to gender and achievement. She is a prolific writer who has published scores of research articles in top-tier peer reviewed journals, several book chapters and an edited book.
 

In 2013, Betsy Danforth, director of the MSU Women's Center, was awarded the inaugural President's Commission on the Status of University Women Award. The award includes a $2,000 honorarium. Danforth served on the committee that founded the Victim Options in the Campus Environment (VOICE) Center, revitalized Students Against Sexual Assault and Students for Choice. She has served on the Women's and Gender Studies Committee since its inception. She works closely with the Diversity Awareness Office, the VOICE Center, the Women's and Gender Studies minor as well as a number of off-campus organizations linked to her work at MSU.