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:
Legacy of Heroines scholar Injir Batmunkh, a junior in scientific illustration and visualization, and her teammate Leah Ylonen, a fall 2025 graduate in healthcare management, won first place at the Healthapalooza 2025 showcase on Oct. 24. Healthapalooza is a student innovation competition led by the scientific illustration and visualization (SCI VIZ) program in partnership with Mary Greeley Medical Center. Their project was Active Ames, a personalized fitness-class scheduling app built to make staying active in the Ames community easier and more accessible.
Dianne Bystrom, director emerita, presented “She Said, He Said…Did They Say It, Too?: Comparing the Harris and Trump Political Ads and Media Coverage” on Nov. 21 as part of a panel on “Democracy on the Line: The Turbulent 2024 Presidential Election” at the 111th annual convention of the National Communication Association held in Denver, Colorado.
The research was conducted with Mary Christine Banwart, professor of communication at the University of Kansas and a 2000 recipient of the Carrie Chapman Catt Prize for Research on Women and Politics. Their research will appear as a chapter in the forthcoming book, “Democracy on the Line: The Turbulent 2024 Presidential Election,” for which Bystrom and Banwart are two of the book’s four co-editors.
Bystrom also was interviewed for a story published on Nov. 2 by Bleeding Heartland on U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra’s launch video in his campaign for governor of Iowa. You can read the story here.
Legacy of Heroines scholars Lilyann Downard and Elizabeth Topf and other members of Cantamus, an Iowa State University treble-voice ensemble, performed with Swedish Folk’appella group Kongero at their concert at C.Y. Stephens on Dec. 5. In June 2025, Downard and Topf were among the members of Cantamus who toured Finland and Sweden for 12 days, which included performances with Kongero and another international folk quartet, Kardemimmit. Cantamus also competed in the Tampereen Sävel international vocal music festival in Tampere, Finland, where they were awarded three Gold Stamps—the highest distinction granted to choirs.
Carrie Ann Johnson, associate director for outreach and communication, and Karen M. Kedrowski, center director and co-director of the Center for Cyclone Civics, have both been selected as a YWCA 2026 Woman of Achievement in the Education category for their work and dedication toward the YWCA’s mission of eliminating racism, empowering women, and promoting peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all. Johnson and Kedrowski will receive their awards at the YWCA’s 2026 Women of Achievement Ceremony on Thursday, March 26 at Reiman Gardens.
Karen M. Kedrowski spoke with Jennifer Taylor of East Wing Magazine on Nov. 11 about Michelle Obama’s new book, “The Look.” On Dec. 12, she appeared on “Talk of Iowa Book Club” to discuss the novel “Nothing to See Here,” by Kevin Wilson. She appeared on Iowa Public Radio’s “River to River” on Dec. 17.
Kelly Shaw, co-director of the Center for Cyclone Civics, appeared on Iowa Public Radio’s “River to River” on Nov. 19 and Jan. 7. Shaw was also interviewed by JD Snover of Local 5 News about the recent resignations of two Mitchellville, Iowa, city councilmembers.