Dean Cathy Rasmussen is honored as a Rochester Business Journal 2024 Icon
An advocate for language and communication access for all, a professor training future speech-language pathologists, and a leader focused on the importance of interprofessional learning: Nazareth University’s Dean of Interprofessional Health and Human Services Cathy Rasmussen, Ph.D., is a Rochester Business Journal 2024 Icon Honors winner.
Icon Honors recognize inspirational Rochester business leaders over age 60 for their notable success and demonstration of strong leadership within and outside their fields. The honorees have moved their organization and Rochester forward by growing jobs and making a difference in the community.
“Cathy lives and breathes the mission of Nazareth University and we rely on her servant-minded leadership,” said Nazareth Provost Maureen Finney. “She is an expert at telling Nazareth’s story to seek support for our students and programs that prepare the next generation of health and human services professionals, as well as to provide direct health and wellness services for our community."
Rasmussen began her career as a speech-language pathologist working with deaf children and their families. She then devoted her work to ensuring strong professional preparation of speech-language pathologists, first as a faculty member and then as chair of Nazareth’s Communication Sciences & Disorders Department. After 28 years, she became dean of Nazareth’s new College of Interprofessional Health and Human Services, a unique constellation of undergraduate and graduate programs. Rasmussen has led the expansion of both critically needed academic programs and clinical services to the community through Nazareth’s York Wellness & Rehabilitation Institute.
Throughout her career, Rasmussen has been a passionate advocate for access to education and services that allow all children to thrive and succeed, and for professionals to have the highest-quality preparation for their careers of service. This began with her early work with families supporting the development of strong communication, language, and literacy. Under her leadership, along with Paula Brown, Ph.D., Nazareth and the National Technical Institute for the Deaf collaborated to create a deafness specialty graduate program for speech-language pathologists to work with deaf children that garnered three major federal grants and continues to prepare professionals for work throughout the U.S. In collaboration with colleagues, Rasmussen has helped Nazareth receive significant federal and foundation grants to support students preparing for health and human service careers, as well as for health and wellness services Nazareth students provide for the Rochester community.
Rasmussen has always championed full access to language and communication. She has researched and presented widely on cued speech, a visual mode of communication that makes spoken language visible for deaf/hard-of-hearing individuals and others who have difficulty accessing or processing spoken language. She has served as president of the National Cued Speech Association and currently serves on the board of Cue College, an online platform providing information and training resources for families and professionals. Rasmussen’s TedX Talk on Cued Speech has been viewed more than 6,500 times.
Rasmussen’s current scholarly work and community engagement focuses on interprofessional initiatives on campus and in the community. Nazareth University’s York Wellness & Rehabilitation Institute, with Rasmussen at the helm, is a national model for an interprofessional teaching and learning environment with state-of-the-art clinics. Nazareth students in interprofessional health and human service programs — including physical therapy, nursing, occupational therapy, music therapy, speech therapy, art therapy, social work, and public health — learn to translate academic knowledge into holistic, person-centered, and evidence-based practice. Supervised by licensed professionals, students then showcase their skills at Nazareth’s clinics, where they serve thousands of people a year. The York Institute offers an array of wellness, rehabilitative, and related educational services to children and adults with varying abilities and needs who are underserved or require supplemental or specialty services.
Rasmussen received a Nazareth Teaching Excellence award and has been named a Distinguished Colleague. She was recently appointed to the Al Sigl Community of Agencies board of trustees.
Nazareth University is an inclusive community of inspired learners, educators, and changemakers who for nearly 100 years have been driven by a bold commitment to action, empathy, equity, and leading innovation for the common good. Impact experiences are at the heart of a Nazareth education, preparing each student to discover within themselves the potential to cultivate positive change in their life's work, in any career field, and in a world that is constantly evolving and infinitely interconnected.
Our broad academic offerings present a range of study options typical of larger universities, yet achieved in our supportive campus culture. Nearly 2,100 undergrad and 600 graduate students enroll in degree and certificate programs and engage in collaborative, transformative learning experiences, preparing for the professions and society of today and tomorrow. In a learning community that purposefully integrates liberal arts and professional programs, Nazareth University graduates are able to launch a lifetime of impactful leadership in communities and workplaces near and far.
