Washington State University Vancouver campus’ Women of Distinction share mentoring, empowering and inspirational qualities.

The seventh-annual Women of Distinction celebration, held March 26, concluded Women’s History Month. For the first time in the celebrations history, two nominees tied for the honor in the community category.

Anyone can nominate a Woman of Distinction, though the nominees must be local to southwest Washington. A committee of faculty, staff, students, and community members rank each application.

“The common theme is mentor, empower and inspire,” said Brenda Alling, director of marketing and communications for WSU Vancouver. “All of these women achieve that in various ways.”

Amy Holmes, the founding principal of Hayes Freedom High School in Camas, and Jennifer Cullison, a Woodland High School science teacher, shared the Community Woman of Distinction honor.

Holmes goes above and beyond every day, said Stephanie Leeper, a programming intern in the WSU Vancouver Office of Student Involvement and monthly event coordinator for the Student Activities Board.

A Hayes Freedom High School student ended up in the hospital following a car accident and gave hospital staff Holmes’ information as an emergency contact, Leeper added.

“(Cullison) is an amazing teacher,” Alling said. Cullison founded a STEM and Health Sciences program at her school.

Beyond that, she created a local non-profit to support the Woodland Free the Children club, Alling said.

A competitive athlete, Cullison also takes part in urban adventure races.

The committee named social studies undergrad Kia Calderon WSU Vancouver’s Student Woman of Distinction. Among her many notable moments is the choice to donate a kidney to a man she met on Facebook.

“She had an interest in kidney disease,” Leeper said. “She knew a lot of people needed donors and started researching it and she found a guy on Facebook who needed a donor. She flew to Michigan to help a guy in need.”

Calderon plans to teach social studies upon completion of her degree.

Brittany Curtiss is the youngest member of the group. A senior at River HomeLink School in Battleground, Curtiss also attends Clark College through Running Start.

“She gives an incredible amount of time to an incredible amount of organizations,” Alling said.

Curtiss was nominated by her younger sister.

Curtiss will graduate from high school with an associate degree. She also spends a large amount of her time volunteering, often through her church.

“I honestly just love helping others,” Curtiss said. “I just feel very blessed to have a heart for service because I do what I do to serve God.”

Curtiss, who hopes to study biology at George Fox University next year, said she was amazed by her fellow awardees.

“I was blown away with how much heart they have for community and I was honored to be among them,” she said.

Alling, who received the title in the community category last year, said she always looks forward to meeting the new nominees and reconnecting with past winners.

“It’s about women supporting women and we give these women a great opportunity to network with each other and with past winners,” she said.

The event drew a crowd of nearly 200 and also included a Dress-a-Coug clothing drive. Organizers took donations of business clothes to benefit WSU Vancouver students searching for jobs.