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Iowa State University’s Department of Political Science honored three alumni at the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Honors and Awards Ceremony on Oct. 25, 2018 in Ames, Iowa.

Lee Ann De Reus was honored with the Iowa State University Alumni Association Alumni Merit Award; Sharon Haselhoff with the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Carrie Chapman Catt Public Engagement Award; and Charity Nebbe with the Department of Political Science Alumni Achievement Award.

Lee Ann De Reus
De Reus earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Iowa State University and earned her master’s and doctoral degrees from Purdue University. A longtime associate professor at Penn State University Altoona, De Reus also serves as the executive director of the Domestic Violence Legal Empowerment and Appeals Project – an organization dedicated to providing pro bono legal representation for survivors of abuse, conducting trainings for judicial and mental health professionals and advancing legal protections for victims through legislative and policy initiatives. She is an internationally recognized expert on gender, sexualized violence, women’s rights, and activism who has dedicated her career to leading change for vulnerable populations in the U.S. and Africa.

She is also the co-founder and board chair for Panzi Foundation USA, a nonprofit organization that assists survivors of gender-based violence at Panzi Hospital in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The organization works to raise awareness and provide resources for the hospital’s after-care programs such as music therapy and literacy resources that increased tenfold under De Reus’ leadership.

Sharon Haselhoff
Haselhoff earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Iowa State University. She is currently the general manager of Grand Falls Casino & Golf Resort, where she manages the daily activities of the $120 million resort and employs 500 team members.

Haselhoff holds leadership positions with development and tourism organizations throughout the area, including the Lyon County Economic Development Advisory Board, Sioux Falls Chamber Diplomats, Sioux Falls Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, Sioux Falls Area Chamber of Commerce Foundation Board, and the Iowa Gaming Association, which she chairs. She recently concluded a three-year term on the Iowa State University College of Human Sciences Dean’s Advisory Board.   

Charity Nebbe
Nebbe earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Iowa State University and a minor in English and biology. For more than two decades she has hosted and produced national and local radio programs. She is currently the host of Iowa Public Radio’s “Talk of Iowa,” which airs weekday mornings at 10 a.m. She also hosts the Emmy award winning series “Iowa Ingredient” on Iowa Public Television and the author of the children’s book “Our Walk in the Woods,” published in 2008.

Nebbe has received several Public Radio News Directors Incorporated (PRNDI) awards, including the Best Interview Award in 2018, and Best Newscast Award in 2004 and 2006. She also received the Upper Midwest Emmy for Iowa Ingredient in 2017 and the Regional Edward R. Murrow Award for Best Documentary in 2013.