SWAGÊÓƵ

The 58th Annual Deborah Morton Society Convocation and Awards Ceremony continues the SWAGÊÓƵ’s tradition of honoring and celebrating the accomplishments of outstanding Maine women. The event, which is free and open to the public, will be held on Friday, June 14, starting at 11 a.m. in Innovation Hall on the university’s Portland Campus.

The Deborah Morton Award recognizes Maine women who have become distinguished by their careers and public service, or whose leadership in civic, cultural or social causes has been exceptional. The award celebrates the memory of SWAGÊÓƵ’s own distinguished Deborah Morton of Round Pond, Maine, valedictorian of the Class of 1879 of Westbrook Seminary, the forerunner of Westbrook College, which merged with the SWAGÊÓƵ in 1996. After graduating, Morton served as a longtime faculty member at the seminary, as a teacher, lecturer, reformer and advocate for equal rights on social, political and economic levels.

In her honor, the Deborah Morton Society continues to promote education and the fostering of leadership for future generations of Maine women providing scholarship support for women students in the Westbrook College of Health Professions who, like Deborah Morton, manifest outstanding qualities of character, leadership and academic ability.

Over the past 57 years, the award has continued to help further the importance of women in our society and serves as encouragement to young women across our state to reflect Morton’s values and service-focused attitude. This year’s award recipients are as follows:

Susan Corbett, Chief Executive Officer, Axiom Technologies

Susan Corbett is a preeminent authority on rural broadband deployment. Throughout her career, she has worked closely with economic development organizations to advance the adoption of internet and wireless technologies to provide critical access to rural Maine residents.

Corbett is the former CEO of Axiom Technologies, a provider and advocate of fast, affordable, and reliable broadband services for rural communities. Corbett first joined Axiom Technologies in 2005 as chief financial officer. Under her leadership, the telecommunications company has designed and constructed more than 100 access points, connecting over 2,500 square miles throughout rural Maine.

Currently, Corbett serves as a consultant to the Axiom Education & Training Center (AETC), a non-profit corporation dedicated to furthering the educational and professional development of residents and businesses throughout Maine and particularly in Washington County.

In the fall of 2017, Corbett launched the National Digital Equity Center as part of the AETC and, as director, collaborates with local and global change makers, relentlessly driving disruptive strategies to close the digital divide in Maine and across the United States.

Corbett is a public speaker, educator, and advocate who is dedicated to providing broadband access and digital literacy to rural communities everywhere.

Elizabeth McLellan, Founder and President, Partners for World Health

Elizabeth McLellan is president and founder of Partners for World Health (PWH), an organization dedicated to improving health care around the world by implementing changes in the medical supply chain. Dedicated volunteers build collaborative partnerships within  health care industries both in the United States and abroad to develop a system for recycling and redistributing discarded medical supplies to places  in need.

As the only organization of its kind in New England, PWH has created a cost savings for health care facilities by lowering disposal fees and limiting unnecessary waste. As of 2018, PWH has prevented a major impact on our environment and redirected over 1 million pounds of discarded medical supplies from landfills to countries in Africa, South East Asia and South America. In addition, McLellan organizes six global health medical missions per year to provide education and training to health care workers with a focus on improving the standard of practice. The PWH accomplishes its mission with a workforce of over 800 volunteers.

As an active member of the Portland community, McLellan has held board membership and leadership positions for organizations such as the World Affairs Council, Portland Ovations, Maine Historical Society and Learning Works. McLellan fulfills her belief that we all need to make a commitment to something greater than our own interests and that if we will all did this, we would have a major impact on our country and our world. 

ZamZam Mohamud, Community Leader, Lewiston, Maine

ZamZam Mohamud is known throughout the Lewiston-Auburn area as a bridge builder. While her job is as a certified nursing assistant, Mohamud’s true calling is her passion for making her community of 18 years a welcoming and accessible place for everyone to call home. By building authentic, personal relationships with long-time residents, new refugees, and asylum seekers along with partnerships with area organizations and government and municipal services, Mohamud helps find a common goal towards which all entities can work together.

Volunteering on boards and committees and taking on new projects that serve the twin cities keep Mohamud energized.  She is tireless in her efforts to solve problems by helping to navigate process and paperwork, tradition and culture, and assumptions on all sides.  She has served on the Lewiston Public Library Board, Androscoggin Head Start, school-based Health Center Advisory Board, Lewiston Auburn Forest Board, Lewiston Auburn Growth Council (LAEGC) Marketing Committee, Downtown Neighborhood Task Force, and Lewiston Police Civil Rights Team. Mohamud was the first Somali representative to serve Lewiston in an official capacity as a member of the Lewiston School Committee in 2013, and in 2014 she was awarded the Maine Women’s Lobby’s Community Power Award.