Recently, an advisor with the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences was honored by her students, or her “kids,” as she likes to call them.

“I was overwhelmed by the honor,” Judy Santacaterina said.

Santacaterina advises students majoring in general studies and has been the director of the NIU Forensics Club for the past 25 years. Members of the club participate in debates, public speaking and dramatic readings.

Santacaterina received her bachelor’s and master’s degree from the NIU Communication Department. She had a great education at NIU, she said, and her teachers had a great impact on her.

During a March 5 Illinois Inter-Collegiate Forensics League Tournament, alumni and past members of the Forensics Club raised close to $3,000 to buy a tree and start a scholarship in Santacaterina’s honor.

The project started out as a small token of appreciation and it turned into a sizeable gesture of recognition, said Jeff Przybylo, associate professor at William Rainey Harper College.

At first, the plan was to buy a tree that would grow near the Alumni and Visitors Center. However, after such a high volume of donations from alumni, it turned into two projects, Przybylo said.

The tree cost about $1,500, so there was enough money for a scholarship after, he said.

The scholarship is going to be open to current speech team members. However, the parameters of the scholarship have still not been set, Przybylo said.

Przybylo admires Santacaterina’s dedication.

“She has given her life to the people of the program,” he said.

She helped and continues to help students find their niche on this huge campus, he said.

“Once you join that family, you’re in it for life,” Przybylo said.

Working with Santacaterina has been simply wonderful, said Sue Doederlein, associate dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

“The best of Northern, that is Judy Santacaterina,” she said.