The Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics is pleased to recognize the accomplishments and activities of its faculty, staff, students, alumni and supporters:
Amy Bix, professor of history and a frequent member of the review committee for the Carrie Chapman Catt Prize for Research in Women and Politics, was recognized as a Distinguished Professor at the LAS Fall Convocation on Sept. 7. She will receive the award at the University Awards Ceremony on Sept. 20.
Dianne Bystrom, director emerita, presented “The Fight for the Right to Vote: It Still Matters” at the Saunders County History Museum, in Wahoo, Nebraska, on Sept. 6 in conjunction with its display of the Smithsonian’s traveling exhibit, “Voices and Votes: Democracy in America.” The presentation was sponsored by Humanities Nebraska.
On August 31, the Committee for the Consideration of Removing Names from University Property issued its draft report and initial recommendation regarding the name of Carrie Chapman Catt Hall. Anyone who wishes to comment on the committee’s report or recommendation should do so on the public comment submission website by Oct. 29, the end of the public input period.
Daniela Dimitrova, professor of journalism and communication, was recognized as a University Professor at the LAS Fall Convocation on Sept. 7. She will receive the award at the University Awards Ceremony on Sept. 20. Dimitrova is a 2018 Women Impacting ISU calendar honoree and past member of the review committee for the Carrie Chapman Catt Prize for Research in Women and Politics.
Nell Gabiam, associate professor of anthropology and political science and co-director of the Middle Eastern Studies Program, received the 2023 International Service Award at the LAS Fall Convocation on Sept. 7. Gabiam is a past member of the review committee for the Carrie Chapman Catt Prize for Research in Women and Politics.
Carrie Ann Johnson, interim research and outreach coordinator for the Catt Center, was featured on the Academic Life podcast on Aug. 17 to discuss the nature, power, and impact of whisper networks as protective informal communication within academia and beyond.
Jennifer Jacobs and Paxton J. Williams are recipients of the 2023 Carrie Chapman Catt Public Engagement Award. The award recognizes an alumnus or friend of the college who has demonstrated outstanding achievement for their work with public entities at local, state, national or international levels. Jacobs, currently the senior White House reporter at Bloomberg, was a political reporter for The Des Moines Register from 2004-2011 and chief politics reporter from 2011-2016. Williams, an attorney at Belin McCormick, P.C. and president of the Iowa National Bar Association, served eight years as an assistant Iowa attorney general and is a former non-profit executive.
Rachel Junck, a 2020-2023 Rice-Neville Legacy of Heroines scholar, announced on Aug. 21 that she is running for re-election to the Ames City Council, representing Ward 4.
Karen M. Kedrowski, center director, was interviewed on July 12 by Nick Reynolds, senior political reporter from Newsweek, about the Iowa abortion ban vote and its implications for former President Trump’s campaign and Gov. Reynolds’s political future. On Aug. 2, she was interviewed by WOI-Local 5 reporter Dana Searles about former President Donald Trump’s indictment. On Aug 6, Kedrowski was a panelist for “What Happened to the Caucus?” at the Lyceum Movement’s Tallgrass Festival in Des Moines. On Aug. 9, she appeared on Iowa Public Radio’s River to River and was also interviewed by Searles about Trump’s scheduled Iowa State Fair appearance. On Aug. 10, Kedrowski gave the virtual presentation “’It’s My Greatest Desire Before I Die to Be in the Iowa Constitution’: Iowa and the Equal Rights Amendment” as part of the Iowa History 101 series for the State Historical Society of Iowa. On Aug. 15, she was interviewed about former President Trump’s fourth indictment by WOI-Local 5. She was interviewed about the Republican primary debate on Aug. 23 by WOI-Local 5 and on Aug. 24 by KCCI 8 News.
Kedrowski attended the American Political Science Association Annual Meeting in Los Angeles, California, from Aug. 30-Sept. 2, participating in two roundtable discussions, “Success at a Teaching-Intensive Institution” and “Called to Service: Political Science Expertise and Civic Engagement Programming. She also presented a paper, “Building a Civic Ethos from Scratch,” and served as a discussant on a panel titled “Fashion Expression and Critique: Political Communication and Disinformation?”.
On Sept. 7, Kedrowski received the 2023 LAS Award for Inclusive Excellence at the LAS Fall Convocation. On Sept. 11, she led the first of a two-session virtual course on the history and current debate surrounding the Equal Rights Amendment through the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI), with the second course to be held on Sept. 18.
Priscilla A. Lambert and Druscilla Scribner, winners of a 2010 Carrie Chapman Catt Prize for Research on Women and Politics, are pleased to announce the publication of their book, “Gender, Constitutions, and Equality: A Global Comparison.” The book, which analyzes over 100 constitutions spanning two decades (1995-2015), examines constitutional provisions concerning equality and discrimination related to women, sex, family, and gender roles. Lambert is an associate professor and the director of graduate studies for the Department of Political Science at Western Michigan University. Scribner is a professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh.
Bhumi Purohit, assistant professor of public policy at Georgetown’s McCourt School and winner of an honorable mention for the 2020 Carrie Chapman Catt Prize for Research on Women and Politics, received the award for best dissertation in the Women, Gender and Politics Research section at the American Political Science Association’s 2023 Annual Meeting for “Laments of Getting Things Done: Bureaucratic Resistance Against Female Politicians in India.”
Natalia V. Rios Martinez has accepted a position as a staff assistant for U.S. Rep. Jeff Jackson of North Carolina. Rios Martinez, a 2023 graduate in in political science, international studies and public relations, was a 2021-2023 Kedrowski and Fitzgerald Family Legacy of Heroines scholar and 2023 Women Impacting ISU calendar honoree.
Kay Kretschmar Runge, a 1969 graduate in history and a longtime donor and friend of the Catt Center, is the recipient of a 2023 Alumni Medal from the Iowa State University Alumni Association. The award recognizes ISU alumni for long loyal service to the university through alumni-related activities and is the premier award given to alumni by the ISU Alumni Association. Runge will receive the award at the Alumni Association’s honors and awards ceremony in November.
Ana Catalano Weeks, senior lecturer of politics, languages and international studies at the University of Bath and 2020 winner of the Carrie Chapman Catt Prize for Research on Women and Politics, received the award for best paper in the Women, Gender and Politics Research section at the American Political Science Association’s 2023 Annual Meeting for “The Political Consequences of the Mental Load.”
Kelly Winfrey, interim director of the Women’s and Gender Studies Program and associate professor in the Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication, was interviewed by Forbes reporter Sarah Muller about the amount of money being spent on advertisements in the state by presidential candidates.