Three Middle Magnet teachers receive LSUS fellowships 05/07/03

Three Caddo Middle Magnet teachers, Margaret P. Catanese, René Loyd and Linda W. Porter, have been awarded American Studies Fellowships from the LSUS International Lincoln Center for American Studies.

The fellowships allow the teachers to attend the annual Summer Teacher Institute at Colonial Williamsburg in July. Each fellowship covers tuition, registration, room and board, transportation and educational material.

Catanese, a teacher at Caddo Middle Magnet, team-teaches American history and literature. A graduate of Northeast Louisiana University, she is a 31-year veteran at the school, and is the recipient of numerous technology grants for her school.

Loyd has taught in Caddo Parish schools for 16 years. She has taken eighth grade students to Washington, D.C., on numerous occasions and has team-taught American history and literature at Caddo Middle Magnet since 2001. Her undergraduate degree is from LSUS, and she has a master’s degree from Centenary College.

Porter has taught in secondary schools for 34 years and has been at Caddo Middle Magnet since 1982. She holds degrees from Northwestern State University, including a master’s degree and 30 additional graduate hours.

“We’re delighted with the quality of our local teachers who have worked long and hard to develop an interest in the American heritage among young students,” said Dr. William D. Pederson, who holds the LSUS distinguished chair in American studies and is director of the International Lincoln Center. “This is our way of showing appreciation for that work, as well as for their support for the year-round activities of the International Lincoln Center.”

Fellowships for Caddo secondary teachers were first presented in 1998. Caddo Middle Magnet teachers have received 10 of the 17 total fellowships awarded. The fellowships made possible by a grant from the Community Foundation of Shreveport-Bossier to the International Lincoln Center.

The International Lincoln Center for American Studies is the largest privately endowed program at LSUS. Founded in 1982, it offers a variety of year-round activities for students, faculty and the community. This year it is conducting its 20th annual Washington, D.C., mini-semester in mid-May, an international conference on Thomas Jefferson Oct. 16-18, and an international Third World Studies conference Nov. 6-8.