Southeastern Louisiana University

Caption …

HONORS FOR HEALTH EDUCATORS – Southeastern Louisiana University professors Millie Naquin, left, and Linda Synovitz received awards from the Louisiana Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance. Synovitz received the LAHPERD Scholar Award, while Naquin was named Outstanding College/University Health Educator.

     HAMMOND – Two Southeastern Louisiana University health education professors have been honored by the Louisiana Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (LAHPERD).

     At the state convention in Baton Rouge earlier this month, Linda Synovitz received the LAHPERD Scholar Award, while Millie Naquin was named LAHPERD Outstanding College/University Health Educator. Both are professors in the Southeastern College of Nursing and Health Sciences’ Department of Kinesiology and Health Studies.

     Synovitz has 12 years of nursing experience and 28 years college teaching experience that includes research/publications, grant writing, classroom teaching, service functions, professional consultations, in-service programming, and student, faculty, and community seminars. She has served as department graduate coordinator, Health Studies faculty coordinator, Faculty Senator, departmental web master and chair of the university Research and Grants Committee.

     Synovitz has published 22 peer reviewed journal articles, is a contributing editor of the state LAHPERD Journal, and has given more than 60 national and 42 regional and state presentations. A former vice president for LAPHERD, she has been awarded more than $1 million in grant funding. She is the recipient of the College of Nursing and Health Sciences’ 2005-2006 Research Award and the 2004 LAHPERD Southern District and the American Association of Health Education, National College/University Health Education Professional of the Year awards. She has been named a fellow of the American School Health Association and has received their Distinguished Service Award.

     Naquin, recipient of Southeastern’s prestigious President’s Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2007, is a graduate of Nicholls State University and the University of Maryland, where she received her doctoral degree in health behavior and smoking and health while working part time as a research assistant at the Center for Disease Control’s Office on Smoking and Health. She is a Certified Health Education Specialist.

    From 1980-1987, she served as a health and physical education specialist in elementary grade schools in St. Charles Parish. In 1987 she was awarded LAHPERD’s first Health Educator of the Year award.

    Naquin joined the Southeastern faculty in 1993. She co-directed the Excellence in Health and Education Project, which trained individuals throughout the state in health education curricula. She also founded annual summer institutes on campus to provide professional development to both school and community health educators, especially in HIV prevention. She secured funding for state standards and benchmarks in health education, and provided leadership for studies dealing with youth health practices and school health policies and practices.

    In 1999 Naquin was a visiting scientist in the CDC’s Division of Adolescent and School Health, where her primary responsibilities dealt with leadership in HIV prevention among college and high school students. In this capacity, she supervised state and non-governmental agencies for work in this area. She returned to Southeastern in 2001 and developed new courses in health information and media, environmental health and grants writing. In 2004 she was awarded the B.C. Purcell Endowed Professorship to conduct her research.