— LISTEE'S SPOTLIGHT —

Dr. Diane Marie Dudzinski is a retired biology educator who served Washington State Community College as a full professor from 1991 until her retirement in 2012. Drawing upon nearly five decades of professional excellence, she previously served as a professor and instructor at such academic institutions as Mercyhurst College, Manhattan College, Pace University, Ladycliff College, Fordham University and Villa Maria College (now known as Gannon University). She also thrived as the chairperson of the department of science and mathematics at the College of Santa Fe. Adjacent to her educational positions, Dr. Dudzinski is recognized as the first woman participant to join a joint oceanographic expedition between the United States and the Soviet Union to the Bering Sea, and she formerly worked in collaboration with Stanford University on closed environment support systems, an ideology that seeks to prepare prospective astronauts for potential microbial contamination on space stations. To attest to her success, Dr. Dudzinski was honored with the 50-Year Award from Gannon University in 2019 and was chosen for grants by the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation. Among other educational credentials, she was awarded a Doctor of Philosophy from Fordham University in 1974.