Dr. Norma Mickelson was a teacher, scholar, academic dean and advocate for equity at the University of Victoria, and the first female dean of education in Canada. In recognition of her contribution to the status of women in Canadian universities, she received the first Sarah Shorten Award in 1991. Her research resulted in 140 publications, books, articles, poems and educational videos that enriched the field of children’s verbal learning and literacy evaluation. Following Mickelson’s retirement from UVic, she was appointed to the board of governors and in 1997 was elected the first female chancellor of the University of Victoria. In 1998, she won the YMCA’s Women of Distinction Award for lifetime achievement.