Cathy Connolly has lived in Wyoming House District 13 since 1992 when she accepted a faculty position at the University of Wyoming. She earned a PhD in Sociology and a law degree from the State University of New York at Buffalo.  At UW, Cathy is a Professor in the Women’s Studies Program, where she served six years as director.   In her sixteen years at UW, Cathy has been recognized as a gifted teacher by students, peers, and administrators; during the 2007-2008 academic year, she was awarded the Seibold Professorship.  Cathy has published numerous papers in the areas of law and justice, and has given presentations about her work around the State, across the nation and internationally. In 2003, she was one of the authors of the Study on the Disparity of Wages between Men and Women in the State of Wyoming which was commissioned by the Wyoming state legislature, and can be accessed at http://wydoe.state.wy.us/lmi/WDReport.pdf. A copy of her full curriculum vita can be viewed at http://uwacadweb.uwyo.edu/cconn/

Community:
Since moving to Laramie, Cathy has been committed to making the community and state a better place.  She has served as a facilitator and consultant for the Wyoming Council for the Humanities, where she has led hard conversations about topics facing our state in the “Justice Talking” and “Faces of the Family” series, and examined with top social studies teachers across the nation, Wyoming’s place in history as the first state to grant women suffrage. She has been on the board of directors of Albany County SAFE Project and United Gays and Lesbians of Wyoming (now WE, Wyoming Equality). She served several years as a grant reviewer for the State Division of Victim Services and is currently a member of the State Department of Workforce Service’s wage gap policy group.  Cathy is also part of the management team for Equality Initiatives, an organization sponsored by the Wyoming Women’s Foundation whose motto is “What's good for Wyoming's women is good for Wyoming's communities.” 

Family:
Cathy has lived on Garfield Street for the past 16 years. As a parent, Cathy has been an active supporter of the schools attended by her son, Lucas, including the UW Lab School, Laramie High School and Whiting Alternative High School.  Lucas is now a student and artist living in Florida, and is the designer of the campaign yard sign.  For several years, Cathy helped organize and cook the spaghetti dinner fundraiser for the county winners of the Wyoming History Day competition and served as a member and chair of the Whiting Alternative High School parent board. 

Fun:
Cathy and Jake, a big furry mutt adopted from the animal shelter seven years ago. can be found (as often as possible) running, biking, or cross-country skiing on the trails of Happy Jack, the Green Belt or Washington Park. Cathy recently won her age/sex category in the Laramie duathlon and proudly wears her prize-winning jersey (of course, she was the only one in that particular group :-). When she has to be indoors, she loves to cook for friends and play word games and cards.