This award is named for Wilma D. Stricklin, a member of the pathfinder generation of women at the university, who took it as an obligation to make the way easier for those who would follow. Stricklin was elected the first chair of the Presidential Commission on the Status of Women and was instrumental in the establishment of NIU's Office of University Resources for Women (now the Gender and Sexuality Resource Center).
Each award recipient is given a work of art created by a woman.
Wilma D. Stricklin came to NIU in 1976 as professor and chair of the department of management. At a time when relatively few women were enrolled in the university's quantitative disciplines, Wilma worked to expand those numbers and served as mentor and role model for those who were willing to explore non-traditional areas. Because of her management experience and her knowledge of organizational structures, Stricklin was asked by President Nelson to chair one of two university committees studying compliance with Title IX in Intercollegiate Athletics. The resulting "Stricklin Report" established the transitional organizational structure that eventually brought men's and women's athletics together in one program.
After serving two years as chair of the management department, Stricklin was asked to accept the position of associate provost and to assume major responsibility for curriculum development and evaluation during a period of significant turnover in university leadership. While in the provost's office, Wilma called the administration's attention to the growing number of women returning to school in pursuit of enhanced credentials and to the particular challenges faced by those juggling work, family and educational responsibilities. The task force she chaired on services for women reentering education was instrumental in the establishment of the Office of University Resources for Women, currently NIU's Gender and Sexuality Resource Center and in the appointment of its first director.
In the summer of 1979, following the departure of the acting vice president and provost and prior to the arrival of the newly appointed provost, Stricklin was asked to serve as acting vice president and provost and to oversee the integration of the university's new College of Law into campus processes and organizational structures. She returned to her professorial role in management in 1980. In 1981, she was elected the first chair of the Presidential Commission on the Status of Women. In 1987, she accepted the position of associate dean of the College of Business, and in her final year at NIU, she again served as chair of her department.
| 2023 | Jessica Reyman |
|---|---|
| 2022 | Kate Cady |
| 2021 | Janice Hamlet |
| 2020 | Beatrix Hoffman |
| 2019 | Shanthi Muthaswamy |
| 2018 | Anne Hanley |
| 2017 | Kristen Myers |
| 2016 | Deborah Haliczer |
| 2015 | LaVerne Gyant |
| 2013 | Denise Schoenbachler |
| 2012 | Laura Vazquez |
| 2011 | Amy Levin |
| 2010 | Virginia Cassidy |
| 2009 | Lesley Rigg |
| 2005 | Kathy Hotelling Honorable Mention: Michele Crase, Gaily Jacky, Amy Levin, William Minor |
| 2004 | Deborrah Pettit Honorable Mention: Dorothy Bishop, Gaily Jacky |
| 2003 | Sue W. Doederlein Honorable Mention: Gaily Jacky, Scheree Howard, Deborrah Pettit, Diana Steele |
| 2002 | Patricia Vary Honorable Mention: Sue W. Doederlein, Sylvia Fuentes, LaVerne Gyant, Julia Shaw Lamb, Mary Larson, Amy Levin, Cynthia J. Plue |
| 2001 | Anne C. Kaplan Honorable Mention: Catherine Doederlein, Sue Doederlein, Lavernse Gyant, Lisa King |
| 2000 | Lynne M. Waldeland Honorable Mention: Patricia Cichy, Martha Cooper, Catherine Doederlein, Sue Doederlein, Barbara Fouts, Elizabeth Gaillard, Mary Suzanne Schriber, Lidia Vitello |
| 1999 | Kay Forest Honorable Mention: Virgina Cassidy, Michelle Emmett, Judy Santacaterina, Barbara Zube |
| 1998 | Carole W. Minor Other Nominees: Andrea Hein, Rosalie Hewitt, Nicole Poole, Diane Ragains and Sandra Sosa |
| 1997 | Judy Bischoff Other Nominees: Margie Cook, Thecla Behrens Cooler, Cary Groth, Deborah Haliczer, Pat Hewitt, Sandi Kuchynka, Nancy Long, Diane Ragains, Robert Self, Debbie Smith-Shank, Judy Skorek, Linda Sons and Toni Tollerud |
| 1996 | Sharon Howard Other Nominees: Judy Bischoff, Margie Cook, Thecla Behrens Cooler, Cary Groth, Pat Hewitt, Sandi Kuchynka, Debbie Smith-Shank, Judy Skorek and Toni Tollerud |
| 1995 | Lois Self |
Each year a NIU faculty or staff member who identifies as a woman is commissioned to create works of art for the Wilma D. Stricklin Award.
A sculptor born and raised in Oak Park, Murphy earned her B.S. in business from Indiana University and received her M.F.A. in ceramics from Northern Illinois University in spring 2014.
The artist of this series, Aubrey Purdy, earned her bachelors degree from Augustana College, where she began working in clay. Purdy was a research associate at the NIU Center for Child Welfare and Education. She began working towards her MFA from NIU in spring 2005. Purdy’s works— Femme 1, Femme 2, Jezebel and Anadevu—are ceramic vessels that focus on the relationship between wheel thrown pottery and the human form. Certain terms are used both to describe the human body and parts of a ceramic form. Moreover, these wheel-thrown ceramic forms lend themselves to soft, round and voluptuous shapes, resembling the female form. The shape was used in this piece to explore and exaggerate the linguistic overlap of ceramic forms and the human body.
The individual design elements in Sober’s piece were simple, a matte black box with a design of squares, circles and bright colors, yet these simple elements interacted in an exciting way, resulting in a dynamic and vibrant whole. Sober compared the box to the way an enhanced climate for women on campus gives women the opportunity to contribute their part to a much greater whole. The resulting atmosphere is dazzling with possibilities for women, allowing them to shine in the workplace just as brilliantly the colors and shapes dancing around this box. This piece was designed and fabricated by the artist using polymer clay, original colored pencil drawings, silver leaf and mica powders.
Serving as a visiting assistant professor at NIU from 1998-1999, Knavel has exhibited in national and regional shows. Her works are held in public and private collections.
Rollman, a professor of art, has paintings in several local collections including the Resource Bank, Nestle Corporation, and the Kane County Judicial Center. In the fall of 1995 she was a representative from NIU and delegate from the National Women's Caucus of Art to the NGO Forum, held in Beijing, China. While in Beijing, she also participated in the UN Fourth World Conference on Women.