KU News Release

LAWRENCE — Five women connected to the University of Kansas will be inducted into the KU Women’s Hall of Fame today.

The new inductees will be honored during the annual Women’s Recognition Program to honor outstanding women in the KU community. The program begins at 7:30 p.m. in the Big 12 Room at the Kansas Union

Carol Marinovich

Karen Miller

Janet Murgia

Mary Murgia

Judy Wright

The five inductees are

— Carol Marinovich, the first woman elected mayor of Kansas City, Kan. Marinovich received a master’s degree in education from KU in 1982. She is senior vice president at Fleishman-Hillard in Kansas City, Mo.

— Karen Miller, dean of KU’s schools of allied health and nursing and senior vice chancellor for academic and student affairs at the KU Medical Center campus in Kansas City, Kan. She has served the KU Medical Center campus since 1996, when she began as dean of the School of Nursing.

— Janet Murguia, president and chief executive officer of the National Council of La Raza, the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States. Before taking the helm at La Raza, she was KU’s executive vice chancellor for university relations for two and a half years. Murguia earned a law degree in 1985 and bachelor’s degrees in journalism and Spanish in 1982, all from KU.

— Mary H. Murguia, the first Latina to serve as Arizona district court judge, recently nominated by President Obama for a vacancy on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Murguia earned a law degree in 1985 and bachelor’s degrees in journalism and Spanish in 1982, all from KU.

— Judy Locy Wright, assistant vice president of KU Endowment and director of the Chancellors Club, KU’s premier giving society. Wright has a 1986 doctorate in communication studies from KU. She has served in professional roles in the Lawrence community and on the KU campus, including director of membership and development at the Spencer Museum of Art and the development director for fine arts at KU Endowment.

KU has inducted outstanding leaders into its Women’s Hall of Fame since 1970. The Women’s Hall of Fame site is on the fifth floor of the Kansas Union.

In all, 15 KU students, staff, faculty and alumnae will be honored at the Women’s Recognition Program for their outstanding contributions and achievements. Six students will receive awards for their contributions in athletics, community service, the international community, leadership and science and recognition of their partnerships and achievements as single mothers. In addition, a number of women will be recognized for outstanding contributions to on-campus housing and sororities.

The 2010 Pioneer Woman award will honor Mary Strong, wife of Frank Strong, who was named KU’s sixth chancellor in 1902.

Cheryl Holcomb, director finance and human resources in the School of Pharmacy, will receive the Outstanding Woman Staff Member award. In addition to her leadership skills with the pharmacy faculty and staff, Holcomb serves on the boards of the Lawrence chapters of the American Heart Association and Soroptimist International. Dale Urie, lecturer in humanities and western civilization, will be named Outstanding Woman Educator. Students consistently rank Urie as a favorite instructor and as one who has influenced their decisions to major in history or the humanities.

Melissa H. Birch, associate professor of business, will receive the Kathleen McCluskey-Fawcett Women Mentoring Women award. As a leader in international business education, Birch has demonstrated excellence in the KU business school and as the director of the Center for International Business Education and Research (KU CIBER).   Appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, Birch serves on the Mid-America District Export Council.  She is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Kansas City International Trade Council and the Kansas International Trade Coordinating Committee.

The program is sponsored by the Commission on the Status of Women, a student organization on campus since the 1960s, and the Emily Taylor Women’s Resource Center, a program of the Student Involvement and Leadership Center.

Students receiving awards are listed below by hometown, level in school, major, parents’ names, high school or previous degrees received and award.

BUTLER COUNTY
From Rose Hill 67133
Aline Demorais Silva is graduating with a bachelor’s in religious studies and will receive the Outstanding Woman Student in Community Service Award. She is the daughter of Amauri and Cynthia Silva and a graduate of Rose Hill High School. Through her volunteer work at the Lawrence Community Shelter and her work as a youth pastor and camp counselor, Silva strives to better and enrich the lives of those around her.

CHEYENNE COUNTY
From St. Francis 67756
Sheryl Marie Miller is graduating with a bachelor’s in community health education. She will receive the Outstanding Woman Student in Partnership award. She is the daughter of Terry and Mary Beth Miller and a graduate of St. Francis High School. She is a youth leader for “Strong Girls,” a group fitness instructor and personal trainer at the Ambler Student Recreation Fitness Center and volunteers as a health educator for the Watkins Student Wellness Resource Center.

JOHNSON COUNTY
From Olathe 66062
Yvonne Nyakio Kamau, senior in biochemistry, will receive the Sally Mason Woman in Science Award. She is the daughter of Godfrey Kamau and a graduate of Olathe North High School. Kamau’s contributions to KU’s science community and the city of Lawrence are reflected in a number awards she has received, such as the Lilly Scholar Award from the Lilly Pharmaceutical Co., Howieson Opportunity Fund Travel Award and the Michael J. Young Award from KU’s Undergraduate Biology Program, to name a few.

From Shawnee 66216
Amanda Lindsay Jobe, senior and softball player at KU, will be honored as the Outstanding Woman Student in Athletics. She is the daughter of Steve and Tina Jobe and a graduate of Shawnee Mission Northwest High School. In 2008 and 2009, Jobe was named Academic All-Big 12 First Team. In addition to maintaining high academic standards, Jobe was selected for the All Big 12 Conference Softball Second Team in both 2007 and 2008, despite suffering from a shoulder injury.

SHAWNEE COUNTY
From Topeka 66605
Jane Njeri Irungu, doctoral student in educational policy and leadership, will receive the Outstanding International Woman Student award. She earned a master’s in education from KU in spring 2000 and a bachelor’s from Kenyatta University in Nairobi, Kenya, in 1986. In addition to defending and passing her doctoral dissertation review, Irungu has earned a master’s and completed two certificate programs in women’s studies and African studies. She has balanced her academic work with her responsibilities as a wife and mother of three children and held full-time employment that required a daily commute to Topeka.

From Topeka 66610
Elise Kay Farrell Higgins, graduating in May with bachelor’s degrees in political science and women’s studies, will be honored as the Outstanding Woman Student in Leadership. She is the daughter of Toni and Jonathan Farrell-Higgins and a graduate of Washburn Rural High school. Higgins is president of KU’s Commission on the Status of Women, community affairs director for Student Senate and a 2009-10 Woman of Distinction at KU.