Date: September 4, 2008
Contact: Lindsay Gladstone
Governors State University
Phone: (708) 534-7090
Fax: (708) 534-8399
Email: l-gladstone@govst.edu
For Immediate Release
University Park, IL, September 4, 2008 - Dr. Elaine P. Maimon, President of Governors State University, was honored by the Ex-Saker Students Association (EXSSA) at their 8th Annual Convention at Chicago’s Ritz Carlton. The EXSSA membership comprises alumni of Saker Baptist College in Limbe, Cameroon. GSU Foundation Board member Bea Tayui, of Flossmoor, nominated Dr. Maimon for the honor.
Dr. Maimon was recognized, alongside Kelly O’Brien, founder of the O’Brien School for the Masai in Tanzania. Both honorees were selected for their dedication to educating women.
Keynote speakers Dr. Sonya Anderson, Executive Director of Education for the Oprah Winfrey Foundation, and William Ball, Vice President/Caterpillar Foundation Global, illustrated the event’s theme, “Believing in Ourselves...A Celebration of Aspiring Women.”
Dr. Maimon expressed her appreciation during her remarks. She noted that GSU’s history of empowering women was aligned closely to the evening’s theme celebrating the aspirations of women everywhere. She also noted the importance of the GSU Promise, an endowed scholarship program currently in development at the university that will enable students who qualify to earn their bachelor’s degrees unencumbered by student loans.
“The majority of our students are women, many of them are working mothers who are facing the triple challenge of raising a family, earning a living, and going to school. At Governors State University, we are dedicated to helping them achieve their educational goals,” added Maimon.
