PULLMAN, Wash. – Long-time faculty member, researcher, teacher and student services administrator Catherine A. Elstad has been named associate dean of the Honors College at Washington State University.“She is a frequent winner of teaching awards and also has a very strong science background, including three years of postdoctoral research, which will enable her to advise many of our students regarding their Honors theses,” said Libby Walker, Honors College dean.
“Cathy’s experience with admissions processes and assessment also position her to take a fresh look at the Honors College processes in those two arenas,” Walker said. Elstad will take over as the college’s thesis coordinator in January when she moves to Honors on a full-time basis.
A WSU alumna and clinical associate professor in the College of Pharmacy and its Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Elstad has been with the university since 1978.
She has taught undergraduate-level biological sciences and zoology. She has served on and chaired the university-wide General Education Committee, is on the Faculty Affairs Subcommittee of the Faculty Senate, and is an inaugural member of the WSU Teaching Academy. She served on the academy’s revisioning committee for the Learning Goals for Undergraduates.
Most recently, she has been associate dean of student services in pharmacy, interacting with students throughout all their years in the college.
“I believe that the Honors College position will allow me to draw upon a similar set of skills and experiences that I had in pharmacy, helping students to understand procedures and processes from admission through graduation,” Elstad said. “I look forward to being part of the Honors team, making the college as successful as it can be and also being a resource for students.”
Elstad earned her B.A. degree from Jamestown College (North Dakota) in biology and modern foreign languages/French. Her master’s degree in biology is from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, and her Ph.D. in zoology is from WSU.
She has received numerous teacher of the year awards from pharmacy. She is also a vice president at the Pullman company Mathison Immuno Scientific, Inc., which provides custom monoclonal antibody services.
Source:
Cathy Elstad, WSU Honors College, 509-335-8030, Elstad@wsu.edu
Cathy Elstad, WSU Honors College, 509-335-8030, Elstad@wsu.edu
Media contact:
Beverly Makhani, WSU Honors College, 509-335-6679, makhani@wsu.edu
Beverly Makhani, WSU Honors College, 509-335-6679, makhani@wsu.edu