Carol Strong Receives Lifetime Achievement Award from Educators

Utah State University dean Carol J. Strong was honored recently with the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Northern Utah Curriculum Consortium, which consists of 12 northern Utah school districts. Strong has been dean of the Emma Eccles Jones College of Education and Human Services since 2004.

 

Jeff Stephens, the consortium’s former chair and assistant superintendent of Weber School District, said Strong is a worthy recipient of the award because of her long career of leadership, service and influence in the field of education in the state and, in particular, in northern Utah.

 

“The award is the highest recognition given by our organization,” Stephens said. “All of us have seen and felt Dean Strong’s commitment to public school districts. As a result, each of our school districts has been impacted.”

 

Current NUCC President Jane Ann Bitton, curriculum supervisor for the Weber School District, presented Strong with the award at the annual administrators’ conference in mid-October.

 

Bitton said the award is especially prestigious given that Strong’s nomination came from the organization’s board members, who are some of the most experienced educators and education administrators in northern Utah.

 

“Dr. Strong was extremely deserving of the nomination,” she said.

 

Michael Freeman, associate dean in the college and USU representative on the NUCC board the past nine years, said Strong has been a tireless advocate for education and educators.

 

“Dr. Strong has maintained strong connections with school districts and school personnel throughout her career,” Freeman said. “She has been very effective both as a faculty member and as an administrator.”

 

Strong’s husband, William Strong, USU executive director of academic programs for regional campuses and distance education, said his wife is known for her clear, friendly communication and her empowerment of others.

 

“She advocates for teachers and school partnerships at every opportunity,” said William Strong. “Her daily work is energized by a deep commitment to the university’s land-grant mission and to the world-class programs in the Emma Eccles Jones College of Education and Human Services. Carol knows personally what access to education can mean so she leads by heart-felt example.”

 

Strong has received other awards for her tireless efforts, including being named USU’s Professor of the Year Award in 1998 and the College of Education and Human Resource’s Researcher of the Year Award in 2000. In 2001 she was named a “Trustee Professor” of Communicative Disorders and Deaf Education, USU’s highest academic honor.  

 

Among other accomplishments, Strong has secured resources for three endowed professorships, a world-class facility for early childhood care and education, and new modes of delivery for arts education. Today, the college led by Strong ranks in the top 2 percent of graduate school of education nationally and ranks 10th in external research dollars.