By Denise Richardson
Staff Writer
Professor Emerita of
Nursing Sharon Davidson
Dettenrieder, class of 1965,
was honored Oct. 3 with
Hartwick College’s inaugural
President’s Award
for Liberal Arts in Practice.
The recognition, est
a b l i s h e d
this year by
P r e s i d e n t
Margaret L.
Drugovich,
celebrates
Dettenrieder’s
work
toward extending
the
values of a
Hartwick education into
her life’s work, according
to a media release.
The award was presented
during the Nursing
Alumni Reception as part
of this year’s Homecoming
& Reunion weekend.
“I am shocked, I am
overwhelmed. I have to say
thank you and thank you
and thank you,” Dettenrieder
said in accepting the
award. “I could not have
done half of the things in
my life without a Hartwick
education. ... I am deeply
honored.”
Surrounded by her
colleagues, students and
friends, Dettenrieder was
lauded as instrumental
in founding the college’s
Transcultural Nursing
program, which has provided
an experiential link
for generations of Hartwick
nurses and bettered
the lives of people in St.
Thomas Parish, Jamaica,
according to the release.
Among her accomplishments
are the establishment
of Hartwick’s chapter
of Sigma Theta Tau,
the international nursing
honor society; the creation
of the Partnership
for
Nursing Opportunities
p r o g r a m
with Bassett
Healthcare;
and
her work
on many
faculty and
department committees.
The award was created
this year to recognize a
member of the Hartwick
community who demonstrates
his or her commitment
to bringing theory
and practice together to
generate knowledge and
understandings; continually
develops his or her capacity
for critical thinking,
ethical action and reflection;
and seeks to build a
deeper understanding of
similarities and differences
across time and space,
among other qualifications,
according to the release.
“You embody all that
Hartwick College has
meant to so many, for so
long,” Drugovich said in
announcing Dettenrieder
as this year’s recipient. “As
an alumna of this venerable
institution, your passion
for its values and virtues
has been shared with many
during your time among
its faculty, and your legacy
carries on in the work that
continues here today.”
Dettenrieder joined the
Hartwick faculty in 1986
and was appointed chairwoman
of the nursing department
in 2000. She has
served as an advocate and
member of Oneonta organizations
including the
Catskill Area Hospice and
the EDD Memorial Fund,
which she established in
memory of her son, Eric.
