Next month, MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon will join hundreds of other influential women in the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame.
“To be an inductee, it is a lifetime achievement award,” Caitlyn Dial, the organization’s interim executive director, said. “When we give out the award, it’s not given lightly. It’s in recognition of that awardee’s, especially President Simon’s, lifetime of work,”
The Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame annually inducts impactful women from Michigan to promote the equality of women by honoring their history and celebrating their accomplishments, according to it's website.
Simon was nominated by the Center for Gender in Global Context, specifically Lisa Fine of the MSU History Department. Her application went through a rigorous nomination process, Dial said.
After applications for potential inductees are collected throughout the year, they’re given to judges who review and rank the applications in rounds.
“The top 20 nominations (from the first round) are then taken onto a second round of judging, where a completely different set of judges read those applications,” Dial said. “There’s usually a natural cutoff. We as a board of the Hall of Fame usually decide where that break is.”
Dial said Simon was one of the top ranks this year. However, Simon was quick to deflect the praise and give credit to the people who helped her get to where she is now.
“I’m a first-generation college student,” Simon said. “You’re always sort of humbled by where you’ve come from and the path, and you’re very thankful for the people who have helped you along the way.”
Simon, along with the other nine inductees, will be honored at an awards dinner and induction ceremony, which is open to the public with the purchase of a ticket from the Michigan Women’s Historical Center and Hall of Fame.
“I’ve been very blessed to be a part of Michigan State, and throughout my career there have sort of been exciting opportunities to contribute, some with titles, some not,” Simon said. “It’s really an accomplishment of the team as much as me, so I’ll accept it on behalf of the team.”
Simon will be inducted into the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame on Oct. 19.
