Bonnie M. Prisk became a "Paul Harris Fellow" on Nov. 1 for her outstanding service to Putnam Rotary and in the community.
Prisk, who is director of the Teays Valley Regional Center for Marshall University, has been active in the club since 1998.
She chairs the Education Committee for the Putnam County Chamber of Commerce, a group which organizes the annual business seminar among area high schools.
The Teays Valley Center administers university classes in six locations in Putnam County with enrollment continuing to grow.
Prisk is a member of the Rotary Board of Directors and serves as chair of the club's scholarship program.
Four years ago, she led a review of scholarship criteria which set financial need as a prime factor in guidelines for the prestigious awards.
"This award is intended for persons who do not qualify for aid, and those who are unable to compete for traditional grants and student loans," said Prisk.
The club has awarded two scholarships in the current year, and recipients may be "adopted" to receive additional aid in following years.
The Paul Harris honor, named for Rotary's first president, goes to anyone who contributes a gift of $1,000 or more to the Annual Programs Fund of the Rotary International Foundation. The award was a surprise to Prisk; Rotarians Chet Marshall and Dianna Casto contributed to qualify Prisk for the award.
Some 33 people in Putnam Rotary, some of them multiple times, have received Paul Harris honors since the local club was chartered in 1995.
In recognition, on Nov. 1, the club unveiled a new display banner containing recognition plaques for each award in the history of the club. Some of them pre-date 1995 when the recipient was a member of another club before transferring to the local group. And some recipients have moved to other parts of the country. And some of them are not Rotarians - the grandson of a club member, for example, who measures his age in months.
President Bob Keely noted that there is room to display several more names on the new banner.
The club has several "sustaining members" who contribute to the Rotary Foundation each year. The club matches the contribution, and in time every sustaining member becomes a Paul Harris Fellow.