May 18-19, 2000

ITEM 107-1020-R0500   Resolution Concerning the Retirement of Katherine M. Weist, Professor of Anthropology, College of Arts and Sciences; The University of Montana-Missoula

THAT: Katherine M. Weist, in her thirty-first year of dedicated service to The University of Montana, has merited the commendation of the Board of Regents of the Montana University System, and has earned the title of Professor of Anthropology Emeritus.

EXPLANATION: Katherine M. Weist earned her Ph.D. degree in 1970 from the University of California, Berkeley. Professor Weist joined the Anthropology faculty at The University of Montana in 1969, spending her entire academic career here. Professor Weist has always been dedicated to the cause of quality instruction. She teaches a wide array of courses, ranging from undergraduate lower division to graduate seminar. Although her courses have always been rigorous and demanding, students flock to these courses with regularity. It is a testament to her broad knowledge base, teaching effectiveness, and her dedication to each student's welfare and educational experience. Indicative of her dedication to students, since 1991, Professor Weist served as the undergraduate advisor/coordinator for the Department of Anthropology. In that capacity, she assisted countless undergraduate majors and minors through the program.

That dedication extends beyond the department to The University of Montana and academy at-large. Over the course of her career, Professor Weist served on numerous University committees, national grant review panels, as well as a journal editorship for Ethnohistory. In 1999, Professor Weist was selected as the state delegate for a conference on Africa in Washington, D.C. Currently, she is serving on the search committee for the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.

Paralleling her dedicated teaching and service, Professor Weist remains an active scholar. She has two books, 17 articles, 13 professional papers, and countless book reviews to her credit. Her commitment to scholarship and teaching culminated in two Fulbright lectureships and a faculty exchange in Africa and Korea. In our mind, Professor Weist has always been an outstanding faculty member and university citizen.

In recognition of her accomplishments and meritorious service, the Department of Anthropology recommends Professor Katherine M. Weist for Emeritus status.