Professional Development Award — Barbara Weber ’69

Barbara Weber graduated from Viterbo College in ’69 with a bachelor’s degree in biology (with a chemistry minor). She earned a master’s degree in entomology from the University of Minnesota in 1971 and a PhD in zoology from Southern Illinois University in 1982.

Weber was an Extension specialist with the University of Minnesota, a consulting forest pest specialist with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, and an entomologist with the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. She joined the Forest Service in 1975 and served 11 years as research entomologist at the North Central Forest Experiment Station in Carbondale, Ill. For three of those years she served as project leader.

From 1986–87, Weber was a congressional fellow of the American Political Science Association. She later served as a legislative resources specialist and staff assistant to the deputy chief for research in Washington, D.C. From 1991–94 she held the position of director of the Pacific Northwest Research Station in Albany, Calif. On July 1, Weber began serving her appointment as associate deputy chief for Forest Service research in Washington, D.C.

Special projects have included: Congressional Relations Task Force member, Accountability Task Force member, leader of the Working in a Multicultural Society Working Group, and chair of the steering committee for the Sierra Nevada Ecosystem Project. She also has been a member of the Forest Products Laboratory Advisory Board (University of California) and the Natural Resources Management Department Advisory Council (California Polytechnic State University).

Weber is a member of the Society of American Foresters and the American Institute of Biological Scientists. Past awards include Public Information Award, Black Walnut Research Award, USDA Certificate of Merit, and the Chief’s Multicultural Award. More recently, she has been nominated for the President’s Meritorious Executive Award for outstanding leadership to the USDA Forest Service.

Community Service Award — Nancy Lafferty, FSPA ’58

Sister Nancy Lafferty graduated from Viterbo College in 1958 with a bachelor’s degree in sociology (with a history minor). She earned a master’s degree from Catholic University and master’s and doctoral degrees from Washington University in St. Louis. She is a Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration, having made her final vows in 1963.

Sister Lafferty has more than 35 years of teaching experience on the undergraduate and graduate levels and was awarded a visiting professorship at Providence University in Taiwan in 1990. Her research and publications are currently focused on multicultural education in Nicaragua, Tanzania, Hawaii, and Taiwan.

Her community service efforts have included helping to initiate a Catholic Worker house of hospitality for needy families in St. Louis and establishing Catholic Worker houses for battered families and dislocated workers in Davenport and Sioux City, Iowa. She has served on the board of directors for Archway Communities Inc., a drug rehabilitation therapeutic community in St. Louis. Currently, she is coordinating an English as a second language program for Hispanic children and their parents.

Since 1991, she has been an associate professor of sociology at Wayne State College in Wayne, Neb. She is a member of the American and Midwest Sociological Associations, the Council on Social Work Education, and the American Association of University Women. She has received numerous grants and awards, including the International Woman of the Year, Who’s Who, and the Community Service Award from Archway Communities.

Service to the College Award — Mary (Maney) Morgan ’54

Mary Morgan graduated from Viterbo College in 1954 with a bachelor’s degree in education. She went on to teach elementary school in the Milwaukee Public Schools, St. Thomas More in La Crosse, and currently teaches at Blessed Sacrament School in La Crosse.

From 1956–66, Morgan served as the second president of the Viterbo College Alumni Association. She has remained active with the alumni association and its board throughout the years. She was a charter member of the Alumni Emeritus Board in 1992.

Other activities have included membership on the Blessed Sacrament Parish Council, TEC participant, CCD teacher, member of the Catholic Women’s Club, and scout leader.

Morgan and her husband, Charles (now deceased), raised four children: Charles, Timothy, Anne, and Kathryn.