Posted on February 28, 2002 at 2:51 p.m.
BIRMINGHAM, AL — Five local women will be honored as the 2002 Outstanding Women by the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) during an awards ceremony, 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. Thursday, March 7, at the Bartow Arena, Green & Gold Room, 617 13th Street South.
The UAB Outstanding Women awards are presented annually by the UAB Women’s Center and the UAB Women’s Studies Program during Women’s History Month. The awards are designed to recognize female faculty, staff, students and community leaders who have served or mentored other women, taken a courageous stance or overcome adversity. Candidates for the award are nominated by Birmingham residents and selected by a committee.
The 2002 winners are: Outstanding Faculty Member, Wendy Gunther-Canada, Ph.D.; Outstanding Administrator/Staff Member, Susan D. Marchase; Outstanding Administrator/Staff Member, Ada Mailhot, M.B.A., M.P.H.; Outstanding Student, Aysha Bey; and Outstanding Woman in the Community, the Rev. Angie Wright.
Gunther-Canada, of Hoover, is an associate professor of political science in the UAB Department of Government and Public Service. She recently published a book about Mary Wollstonecraft, the 18th century pioneering feminist author who provided the first systematic argument for women’s political rights. In 1994, Gunther-Canada founded the Mary Wollstonecraft Prize for the best paper written by a student in the Women’s Studies program. The prize is open to any undergraduate writing on gender and politics.
“In every sense of the word, Wendy Gunther-Canada is a leader in this department,” said James Slack, Ph.D., chairman of the Department of Government and Public Service, “and she is a leader in the field of political philosophy. As such, she has a tremendous impact on the academy and the future of women within the academy. It is an honor to have Wendy as a colleague. She is a role model for everyone, including myself.”
Susan Marchase, of Vestavia, juggles numerous responsibilities as director of administration and fiscal affairs in the Department of Medicine at UAB. Her duties include assisting the department chairman, overseeing departmental human resources, grants management, information systems, defining and monitoring budget commitments and new programs and assisting in the development and implementation of faculty development programs.
“Sue is a woman of strong convictions and has the courage to speak them as well as live them,” said Sally Fried, an administrator in the Division of Infectious Diseases. “She represents the department on committees involving women’s concerns. Specifically, she has served on the Department of Medicine’s Faculty Women’s Committee and has promoted the recruitment of women faculty and administrators. … She believes the strength of the department lies in its personnel and that diversity energizes the department as well as the institution.”
Ada Mailhot, of Mountain Brook, is a native of Honduras. She arrived in the United States in 1976 to study English at the University of Southern Mississippi. She later studied for two years at a junior college before transferring to UAB in 1978 to earn a bachelor’s degree in accounting, an MBA and a master’s degree in public health. Mailhot has worked at UAB since 1982 and has been director of administrative and fiscal affairs in the UAB School of Public Health since 1992.
When Hurricane Mitch devastated the tiny country of Honduras in 1998, Mailhot decided to help her native country, and with the assistance of many Birmingham residents and churches, she organized a massive effort to collect clothing, food items and equipment.
Three years later, following the Sept. 11 attacks, Mailhot spearheaded a fund-raising effort to honor the Birmingham Fire and Rescue personnel at Fire Station No. 2 near the UAB campus. Mailhot, along with the Staff Council of the School of Public Health, raised nearly $2,000.
“I’ve seen Ada work behind the scenes responding to the needs of fellow employees and others in the community,” Anne C. Smith, an administrative associate with the School of Public Health wrote in a nomination letter. “By example, she encourages others to follow her good deeds.”
Graduate student Aysha Bey, of Hoover, is a student, a mother and a grandmother who is pursuing a second master’s degree while working as an adjunct professor in the UAB Department of English. And despite the long hours she spends in class or teaching, she perseveres despite having lupus. Bey received the 2001 Samuel B. Barker Award for Outstanding Graduate Work, making her the first student in the School of Arts and Humanities to receive the award. After receiving her master’s degree, Bey will pursue a doctorate with an emphasis on English and Irish literature.
“Throughout her career here at UAB she has displayed a passion for her graduate work, a concern for students and a high level of professionalism in everything she does,” said Marilyn Kurata, Ph.D., chairwoman of the Department of English.
The Rev. Angie Wright, of Homewood, is pastor of Beloved Community United Church of Christ in Avondale, a multi-racial, multi-cultural church, which she founded. Wright has worked for years to combat poverty and to help provide affordable housing to people. She worked as program coordinator with the Bethel Ensley Action Task (BEAT), a neighborhood revitalization project in Ensley.
Wright also was a founder of Alabama Arise, a coalition of 140 religious, community and civic groups that work on poverty issues by promoting state policies to improve the lives of low-income people.
“Beginning a multi-racial church is a difficult process,” said Jan Hitchcock, program coordinator with the UAB Center for Urban Affairs and a member of Wright’s church. “Add to that the history of Birmingham as a backdrop to the creation of this church, and Angie’s work is even more monumental. She has been told on many occasions that it cannot be done. It’s been said that Sunday mornings are the most segregated time of the week. Angie’s goal is to provide an opportunity for people from different backgrounds to break that long-held mold and come together in a community of faith.”
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