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Professor Laurie Swabey honored with $10,000 Faculty Excellence Award
By Julie Michener
Sept. 11, 2008
College of St. Catherine Senior Vice President Colleen Hegranes announced during College Convocation that Laurie Swabey, Ph.D., is the recipient of the 2008 Bonnie Jean Kelly and Joan Kelly Faculty Excellence Award, which carries a $10,000 cash prize.
Professor and Chair of the ASL/Interpreting Department, Swabey has taught at St. Kate’s for the past 18 years.
She led the development of the baccalaureate American Sign Language/Interpreting Program that has attracted more than $2.3 million in funding support, including the creation of the Collaborative for the Advancement of Teaching Interpreting Excellence (CATIE) Center on campus. The center, one of six national centers funded by a national interpreter education project, has brought national attention to St. Kate’s and its curriculum that prepares students to become medical and legal interpreters.
Her scholarly work focuses on the role and status of sign language interpreting in society. She has been invited to more than 30 national and international conferences to present her work.
In addition to teaching at St. Kate’s, Swabey was the administrator of the RSA Region V Interpreter Education Grant Project that provided funding and resources to create 15 innovative educational CDs for interpreter development.
“She has brought local, regional and national attention to the College with her leadership, exemplary scholarship and teaching and her groundbreaking work,” said Hegranes. “I am honored to present her with this award.”
College of St. Catherine alumna Joan Kelly endowed the faculty prize and a distinguished visiting scholar program, as well as a writing excellence prize for students. The Bonnie Jean Kelly and Joan Kelly programs are all co-named to honor Joan’s late sister, Bonnie Jean, who attended St. Kate’s with her.
This is the third year the award has been presented. Past recipients include Mary Wagner, professor and program director of the master of library and information science program; and Mary Ann Brenden, associate professor of social work and director of the baccalaureate social work program.
A native of St. Paul, Kelly is a 1946 Phi Beta Kappa graduate and credits her liberal arts education and the Sisters of St. Joseph for her success after she joined her father’s business and led it to national standing.
Contact Julie Michener, (651) 690-6521
