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Maggie Beeber and Elizabeth O'Leary

A commitment to excellence at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point has brought the following recognitions to university faculty:

• Maggie Beeber, the School of Education coordinator of undergraduate advising, won the Wisconsin Education Association Council's Friend of Education Award for 2016-17. She has worked at UW-Stevens Point since 1988 and is the co-adviser of the Student Wisconsin Education Association, the largest chapter in the state. She is a 1989 graduate of UW-Stevens Point.
   
• Jeff Dimick, a research specialist in the College of Natural Resources' Fish and Water Resources area, received the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Water Resources Partner Award. He was recognized for providing services through UW-Stevens Point's Aquatic Biomonitoring Laboratory, which analyzes water samples, as well as his work with training, mentoring and supervising students. Dimick also works closely with water resources biologists and managers, attends statewide meetings and acts as a technical resources consultant.
   
• Rob Michitsch, associate professor of soil and waste resources, received the Outstanding Achievement in Education Award from the Associated Recyclers of Wisconsin at the 2017 Wisconsin Integrated Resource Management Conference held in Elkhart Lake, Wis. The award is given to an individual or group who has exceled in environmental education, specifically related to solid waste and recycling.
   
• Sallie Scovill, associate professor of health promotion/wellness, received the National Wellness Institute Circle of Leadership Award from Professor Emeritus John Munson as part of the National Wellness Conference in St. Paul, Minn. She was recognized for contributions to the training and certification of worksite wellness specialists and program managers. She oversees students who organize the UW-Stevens Point Employee Wellness program and was instrumental in helping the university become tobacco-free.
   
• Jasia Steinmetz, professor of dietetics, was recognized as An Everyday Hero by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Foundation. She and her students were acknowledged for working with small-scale farmers in Nairobi, Kenya, to create nutrition-sensitive agricultural practices.
   
• Rory Suomi, professor of health science, presented at the Third Annual International Conference on Exercise and Health, hosted by Guangzhou Sport University in China. Suomi presented the keynote address, "Creating Waves: Developing a community/university aquatic physical therapy program." He also served as a visiting professor at the university.
   
  Suomi also received the 2017 College of Professional Studies Ethel and Ward Cable Family Faculty Heroes Award, which includes a $1,000 grant to advance the work of a program or cause. Suomi developed the Special Needs Aquatic Program in 1992, focusing on aquatic exercise for adults with disabilities and arthritis and swim instruction for young children and infants.

• Lisa Theo, an instructor in geography, was elected to a three-year term on the Council on Undergraduate Research in the Social Sciences division. In that role she will help lead development in the organization's programs, meetings and benefits, all which promote undergraduate student research.
   
• Susan Turgeson, assistant professor of family and consumer science, was honored as a Friend of FCCLA by the Wisconsin Family, Career and Community Leaders of America. The organization promotes careers in education, human services, personal/family finance, housing/interior design and nutrition for students in grades 6-12. She is active with national and state professional family and consumer science organizations.
  

• Maggie Watson, professor of communication sciences and disorders, received the 2017 Wisconsin Speech, Language and Hearing Association Mentor Award at the association's convention. She was recognized as an inspiration to students in her professional practice and for interactions with clients and peers. 
  

• Patricia Williams, emeritus professor of interior architecture, has authored "The Portside of Shadows: Poems of Travel – Inner, Outer and Unchartered Places" through Finishing Line Press. The book shares travel experiences as well as those within the soul and imagination. Williams' work has been published in online and print journals in the United States and England.