Maggie Harris to Be Recognized at Valpo Homecoming

VALPARAISO, IN (09/23/2010)(readMedia)-- Maggie Harris will be one of 16 alumni and volunteers recognized by the Valparaiso University Alumni Association during Homecoming festivities at the University this weekend. The honorees will be recognized during a special worship service at 10 a.m., September 26 in the Chapel of the Resurrection.

Harris of Rochester, a 1979 graduate, will be honored with the Alumni Achievement Award, recognizing those who have achieved extraordinary success in their professional life.

Harris is currently a community developer with Community Lutheran Ministry Inc. out of Rochester. She also has been a deaconess at Lutheran churches in Nebraska, Tennessee, and Missouri. For 30 years, Harris has been a member of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod Black Ministry and the Lutheran Deaconess Association, and has been a member of the Rochester Valparaiso University Guild for 20 years. She volunteers her time to work with children living in areas of low income and high crime, helping to improve their way of life. She has been a volunteer with Project Urge for eight years and has been a member of its board of directors for the past four. She also has volunteered her time with neighborhood basketball for teens for the past eight years.

Valparaiso University is a comprehensive university that enrolls more than 4,000 students on its campus southeast of downtown Chicago. A community of purpose-driven, empowered, service-minded and ethical individuals who embrace the pursuit of truth with freedom, humility and compassion, Valpo has been identified as one of the top master's-level institutions in the Midwest by U.S. News & World Report magazine for the past 22 years.

More than 110 undergraduate academic programs are offered through the colleges of Arts and Sciences, Business Administration, Engineering and Nursing. Valpo also has a distinguished honors college-Christ College, a School of Law and more than 40 degree and certificate programs in its Graduate School and Continuing Education Division. Valpo has been recognized for its commitment to outstanding teaching, preparing thoughtful leaders with strong cross-cultural skills and global awareness, and dedication to serving others.