Two NIC ‘Women of Distinction’ Recognized

Soroptimist International of Coeur d’Alene honored seven local women Friday as “Women of Distinction” whose achievements and dedication to community service set them apart. Two of the women are on the faculty and staff at North Idaho College.

Professor Kat Gilmore decided to do something about the crisis in literacy, which exists nationally where one in six adults are unable to read above third-grade level. She took her passion and compassion for challenged adult readers and founded The Literacy Project of North Idaho that offers one-on-one tutoring and three other programs to assist adult learners.

The LPNI mission is simple: “We partner with adults in our community to provide opportunities to gain the literacy skills needed to be self-sufficient and participate fully in their role as community members, family members, and lifelong learners.”

Louisa Rogers also was recognized at the luncheon held at the Best Western Plus Coeur d’Alene Inn where more than 150 people gathered.

Rogers is the Student Success Navigator at the NIC Center for New Directions, a grant-funded department that serves primarily single parents and displaced homemakers with support and resources to ensure school success in CTE programs. She covers Coeur d’Alene, Sandpoint, and Parker Technical Center, and said that demand quadrupled in the last year for resources found at the CND.

“North Idaho College is an incredible asset to our community,” Rogers said. “I have witnessed firsthand the power education has on those I serve.”

Soroptimist Coeur d’Alene was chartered in 1948, and works to provide women and girls with access to education and training to achieve economic empowerment through mentoring, grants, and other financial support. Since its inception, over 300 women in our community have been honored as “Women of Distinction.”