Spectrum - Volume 20 Issue 13 November 20, 1997 - Keough receives Distinguished Alumni Award

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Keough receives Distinguished Alumni Award

By Carolyn Fray

Spectrum Volume 20 Issue 13 - November 20, 1997

Katherine E. Keough, president of St. John Fisher College and an alumna of the Virginia Tech Northern Virginia Center, spoke on the topic of "Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow--What is Ahead for Higher Education?" November 12 at the Northern Virginia Center. Keough's presentation was part of the university's 125th Anniversary Celebration and the Northern Virginia Center's Leadership Speakers Series.
Following her remarks, Janet Johnson, dean of the College of Human Resources and Education, presented Keough with the 1997 Distinguished Alumni Award. "Katherine Keough's extraordinary professional and personal achievements serve as an inspiration for educators, students and the public alike," Johnson said. "She has shown us how to never give up in the pursuit of both education and justice."
In 1979, while she was serving as assistant superintendent for personnel at the Tehran American School in Iran, her husband, William F. Keough, was among the 52 Americans taken hostage in the American Embassy and held for 444 days during the Iranian hostage crisis.
Following the hostages' release, Keough served as president of the Family Liaison Action Group, Inc., an organization formed with the assistance of the U.S. Congress and the Carter Administration and housed in the State Department. In that capacity, she served as liaison for the White House, Department of State, and Department of Defense, assisting in the drafting and implementing of the Hostage Relief Act of 1980 and the Omnibus Terrorism Act of 1985 as well as directing several successful capital campaigns.
Keough earned a bachelor of English literature degree from Pace University, a master of science degree from Hofstra University, and a doctorate in educational administration from the Virginia Tech Northern Virginia Center.