Excellence in Orthopedic Surgery

Veronica Dowling ‘72

Veronica (Ronnie) Dowling is remembered by classmates as a Renaissance woman with endless energy, whether as basketball player, actress or class president.  After graduating with a BA in Math and Biology, she pursued her MMS from NJ College of Medicine and Dentistry and her M.D. from the University of Colorado Medical Center, where she completed her surgical internship and orthopedic residency. Ronnie was the first female orthopedic resident to complete the residency at the University of Colorado and remains one of only 2% of orthopedic surgeons who are female. She loved trauma, became a Chief Resident and went to Switzerland to do a trauma fellowship after her residency.

In 1982, Ronnie and husband, Dr. Bill Waldo decided to set up practice in the rural town of Show Low, AZ where they thought they might be able to make a difference. They were the first surgeons, (Ronnie the first woman doctor), in this ranching/lumber/tourist community.  They lived out of a mobile home and were on call every night and every weekend. After 7 years, they recruited other specialists and made the community hospital solvent. Ronnie also put in clinic hours at the Apache Reservation for 16 years and volunteered to teach nursing courses at the local community college. In her spare time, she went out with the local ski patrol to patch up accident victims.

Ronnie and her husband started their family later in life and when she had triplet boys in her 40’s, she switched to mostly outpatient work, giving up most of the joint replacement surgery that she handled for many years. She now specializes in sports medicine and hand surgery, servicing both children and adults. She is the Medical Director for surgical services for a small hospital 60 miles from her home town.

Ronnie has been involved with the Apache County Medical Society since 1983 and was President from 1994-2003.  She has held a number of positions in the state medical associations, including President of the Arizona Medical Association and remains on the executive, legislative and financial boards. She is currently one of four Arizona American Medical Association Delegates and this year was named Chair of the delegation. She serves as the Vice Speaker for the Western Mountain States Caucus. She is also a member of the Association of Women Surgeons, the Ruth Jackson Orthopedic Society, the American Medical Women’s Association and the Western Orthopaedic Society.

With five active boys, Ronnie decided to concentrate on only one of their sports. She chose soccer because her eldest, Teddy, loved it. She progressed to becoming a coach and then a referee for both the regional AYSO and high school teams. She continues to coach a club soccer team, spending from November to May roaming the nearby country with her team. She and her family participate in multiple town-sponsored events, including 10K runs and holiday programs. She and her husband began running in the late 70s and continue to run each day. She started each son running at about age 8 and they too continue to run and participate in track and soccer in high school. Ronnie has had a Captain’s license for 20 years and the family takes a sailing vacation every June.  In addition to Ronnie’s sons: Teddy, Keegan, Loren, Kierdan and Michael Patrick, her family includes 2 huskies, an adorable mutt, numerous cats, 4 horses, a llama and a lizard.

Excellence in Poetry Therapy

Mrs. Marion Goldstein ‘78

Marion Goldstein attended Caldwell as an adult student and, after receiving her B.A. in Sociology, continued at the New School for Social Research to obtain her M.A. in Psychology.

She began her career as a poetry therapist in schools and nonprofit organizations like Turning Point Rehabilitation Center and the Carrier Foundation where she conducted poetry therapy sessions with psychiatric clients. Over 18 years at the Carrier Foundation, Marion held the positions of counselor in both in-patient and out-patient programs.  She was Director of the Women’s Program and The Women’s Trauma Program. She left to start her own private psychotherapy practice.

A frequent lecturer at colleges (Princeton, College of New Rochelle, Marywood and St. Peter’s) and conferences, Marion explains the healing effects of poetry therapy and demonstrates how it can be integrated into the therapeutic process.  She has also taught an Introduction to Poetry Therapy course at Caldwell College and at Hofstra University.

For many years, she served on the boards of both the Federation for Biblio-Poetry Therapy and the National Association for Poetry Therapy and was recognized by both organizations for outstanding service.  She also served a term as President of the New Jersey Poetry Society – Triad Chapter.

Marion’s articles are included in professional journals such as The Journal of Poetry Therapy, The Arts in Psychotherapy, and The American Journal of Social Psychiatry. She is a chapter contributor to  Life Guidance through Literature.  She has two published chapbooks of poetry,  Blueprints and Psalms for the Cosmos  and her poetry and essays have appeared in numerous reviews, literary journals and books, including Preaching the Poetry of the Gospel and  Science as Sacred Metaphor. Her non-fiction work, Hard to Place: One Family’s Journey Through Adoption, was published in 2009.

Marion has received three separate Co-Med Awards from the Carrier Foundation and a Red Wheelbarrow Award from Pudding House Press. For the past ten years, she has spent time as a volunteer with CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates), and UWWE (University Women of West Essex).

Marion and her husband, Robert, have five children: Robert, Kathleen, Dennis, Eddie and Kurt and currently live in Cedar Grove, New Jersey.

Excellence in Chemical Education

Elizabeth Matuszak Howson ‘69

Elizabeth (Bettyann) Howson has had a 25-year career teaching chemistry at Wayne Valley High School, Madison High School and, most recently, Chatham High School, where she taught every level from beginning concepts to advanced placement.

After earning her B.S. in Chemistry Education from Caldwell, she pursued postgraduate studies in chemistry education at Oklahoma State, University of Maryland and Montana State and was intent on keeping up with current trends and incorporating them into classes each year. When the internet became available, Bettyann was one of the first teachers to incorporate it into her teaching.   She also used the SmartBoard as a classroom tool and electronic homework in her classes. She was so effective in using the internet in teaching that she started instructing teachers within the state and nation about programs available for instruction, assessment and research. For many years she has offered workshops at national and statewide conferences. Bettyann received the Edward J. Merrill Award for excellence in high school chemistry teaching presented by the North Jersey Section American Chemical Society.

Bettyann’s commitment and leadership within the field has constantly grown.

She has served on two national committees and is currently in her tenth year of a twelve-year commitment as Secretary for the American Chemical Society North Jersey Section Executive Board.  She has also been a member of the Executive board of the N.J. Science Teachers Association for many years.

Since 2000, Bettyann has co-chaired the Merck State Science Day, an academic competition funded by the Merck Institute for Science Education in collaboration with the New Jersey Science Teacher Association.  As administrator, Bettyann contacts test writers and proofreaders to provide the competition documents , assembles packets to schools, manages registration and coordinates scoring for the premiere science competition in the state, attracting over 2000 students each year.  Merck hosts the top four scorers in each category, known as “Merck Scholars,” at a luncheon and facility tour at their corporate headquarters in Rahway, NJ. In 2007, Bettyann was named a Fellow of the N.J. Science Teachers Association and in 2009, she received the Association’s Special Award in recognition of her work with Merck State Science Day and contributions to science education.