Dalhousie had particular cause to be proud of some of its outstanding faculty and alumni this week.

On Wednesday, November 19, 19 women were honoured during the 25th Annual Progress Women of Excellence Awards held at the World Trade and Convention Centre in Halifax. Among them were Dal’s very own Shelly Whitman, executive director of the Roméo Dallaire Child Soldiers Initiative, and Sherry Stewart (BSc’87) (at left), professor of Psychiatry, Psychology/ Neuroscience and Community Health and Epidemiology and the founding director of the Centre for Addictions Research at Dal (CARD).

The two faculty members, celebrated in the awards’ “Education and Research” category, were joined by six other recipients in various categories who are Dal alumni.

The awards were presented by the Canadian Progress Club Halifax Cornwallis, a charitable women’s foundation that is dedicated to helping those in need in the HRM. The event also doubled as a fundraiser in support of Phoenix Youth, a non-profit community-based safe haven homeless youth.

“I feel very honoured to have been chosen to receive this among the other women who did,” says Dr. Stewart. “One of my colleagues in the Psychology department, Christine Chambers (BSc’96), won it in the past, and she’s a very outstanding researcher, so I knew that it wouldn’t be easy and that the competition would likely be difficult.”

Read more in “Celebrating women of excellence,” on dal.ca.

Outstanding alumni

In addition to Dr. Stewart, six more Dal alumni were honoured during the awards:

• Christa Brothers (LLB’96), litigation partner with Stewart McKelvey
• Ann Mellema (MBA’96), director, programs governance with Irving Shipbuilding
• Mary Vingoe (BA’76), freelance director and playwright
• Vicki Grant (BA’82), writer
• Elana Liberman (LLM’04), owner/CEO of Cyclone Studios Inc.
• Dr. Elaine Gordon Cragg (DDS’69), doctor of dental surgery and past recipient of the Dalhousie Alumni A. Gordon Archibald Award.