Linda Wallace, dean of the School of Nursing, and Dianne Roden, professor of finance, were recognized for their campus contributions, spanning 25 years each.
Wallace founded IU Kokomo’s thriving international study program, first by participating in a faculty exchange with the Margaret Pritchard College of Nursing (now called Jesus University) in Jeonju, Korea. She grew the program by leading IU Kokomo students to visit Korea, and by hosting Korean nursing students on campus. She also co-led efforts to start the Master of Science in Nursing, and the Family Nurse Practitioner programs.
Chancellor Susan Sciame-Giesecke saluted her for for these long-lasting contributions, awarding Wallace the highest honor she can bestow, the Chancellor’s Medallion.
Wallace anticipates continued success for the campus and the nursing program into the future. She thanked faculty and staff for their support and assistance, saying nobody is successful without contributions from other people.
“It’s an honor and a privilege to be here,” she said. “I thank the campus administration for putting trust in me to lead the School of Nursing.”
Wallace joined the IU Kokomo faculty in 1992 as a visiting lecturer, and became dean of the School of Nursing in 2008. She’s also served as interim dean of the Public Administration/Health Management program from 2012 to 2014.
Wallace has received the IU Kokomo Alumni Association’s Distinguished Service Award, the IU Kokomo Chancellor’s Diversity Award, the Sigma Theta Tau Alpha Chapter Excellence in Leadership Award, the IU Trustee’s Teaching Award, and the IU Teaching Excellence Recognition Award.
Sciame-Giesecke also thanked Roden for her service, noting her excellence in teaching.
“So many of her students have applauded her teaching, she believes in her students and is willing to help them succeed,” said Sciame-Giesecke.
Roden said she will miss her colleagues, but she is excited to begin new adventures with her family. She spoke about her belief that personal, meaningful relationships between students and faculty are a key part of the learning experience.
“When a teacher can work with an individual student and explain a difficult concept so it speaks just to that student, why, it’s like magic,” she said. “I have felt it. I know it’s real. And lots of my students have felt it, too..
Roden joined the IU Kokomo faculty in 1992 as an assistant professor of finance, and was promoted to professor of finance in 2004.
She’s received the IU Trustee’s Teaching Award four times, most recently in 2009. Roden also has been honored with the Claude Rich Excellence in Teaching Award, two Teaching Excellence Recognition awards, and was inducted into the Faculty Colloquium on Excellence in Teaching. In 1996, Roden received the Chancellor’s Award for Outstanding Service.
The Chancellor also commended adjunct faculty member Carol Garber, who has worked for IU Kokomo part-time since 1994.
“She has the biggest heart for students of anyone I know,” Sciame-Giesecke said. “She believes in each and every student. I know she changed lives for many of them.”
Indiana University Kokomo serves north central Indiana