Clark College professor and counselor Carole Mackewich has received the 2012 Esther Matthews Award from the Oregon Career Development Association (OCDA). The award is presented to an individual who has demonstrated lifelong leadership, scholarship, and professional commitment to the career development field.
Mackewich was honored during the 2012 OCDA Professional Development Institute and Awards Luncheon in Clackamas on March 9.
As chair of the Clark College Human Development and Counseling departments, Mackewich created the framework and curriculum for many of the college’s human development classes. She founded the college’s Student Success Workshop series providing free workshops conducted by counselors and instructors.
Mackewich said that receiving the award came as a “complete surprise” to her.
“I was at the annual meeting, and the announcer began describing this year’s award winner,” she said. “They read out this whole long list of accomplishments and I thought, ‘Gee, this person has impressive credentials.’ And then they mentioned that this person had played a pivotal role in moving a Counseling Center to its new location. That’s when I realized they were talking about me.”
Mackewich added that she felt honored to win the award.
“It’s especially nice to be recognized by my peers,” she said.
Mackewich joined Clark College in 1985 as a part-time faculty member. In 1992, she became a tenure-track instructor and counselor. In 1999, she became one of Clark’s first online instructors.
Fifteen years ago, Mackewich founded a career library to serve as a laboratory for students taking career classes. Over time, she received funding for staff and resources and the library became a part of the Career Services Department. The career library ultimately developed into the Clark College Career Center, a fully staffed resource center where students and community members interact with resources that help with choosing a major, choosing a first career, advancing career pathways and changing careers later in life. During the fall quarter of 2011, the Career Center welcomed 58 class visits and 2,400 individuals.
Mackewich, who resides in Vancouver, was recently selected as one of 13 Clark College faculty members to act as Moodle Mentors through a grant to the college’s eLearning Department. In that role, Mackewich mentors colleagues in basic Moodle learning management system (LMS) usage and best practices of curriculum design and use of technology for online, hybrid and web-enhanced courses.
Mackewich earned a bachelor’s degree in English from Bloomsburg State College in Bloomsburg, PA and a master’s degree in Educational Psychology from the University of Washington in Seattle. She also holds an online teaching certificate from UCLA.
