Clarence Beckwith Distinguished Alumni Award: Valerie Dell Huber
Valerie Dell Huber says that when she was taking courses at Lake MichiganÌýCollege in comprehensive social science, she may have been daunted to think thatÌý30 years later she would be working in Washington D.C. with Congress and theÌýWhite House to draft legislation as the president of the DC-based National AbstinenceÌýEducation Association (NAEA). But today the agency she co-founded providesÌýadvocacy for children and for the schools, health departments, and other organizationsÌýacross the country that provide mentors and risk-avoidance education to youth.Ìý
Valerie credits her time at LMC as part of the foundation for her accomplishments. LMCÌýintroduced her to the interplay between social policies and their very real impact onÌýpeople. She went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in history with an emphasis in politicalÌýscience and a master’s degree in education at Cedarville University in Ohio.
After college, Valerie developed a new outlet for everything she had learned: she hadÌýfour children. She was a very involved parent, and it became clear to her that herÌýchildren’s friends and peers didn’t all have the same advantages as her own and otherÌýchildren. So as her children grew, she began to channel her energies into practicalÌýefforts that empower youth to make healthy decisions for themselves so they will flourishÌýas adults.
TheÌýClarence Beckwith Distinguished Alumni Award was presented toÌýValerie Dell Huber in 2014.
