Pat Martinez, the long-time nursing advisor at Northwestern State University’s Leesville-Fort Polk campus, was recently named the 2011 recipient of the Larry Monk Award.

The award honors Monk, executive director of the Leesville-Fort Polk campus from 2003-08.

“It was an honor and privilege to receive the award. Larry and I were close friends,” said Martinez, who retired earlier this year after 17 years on the Leesville-Fort Polk campus. “We taught together in the public school system before he became a supervisor and later assistant superintendent.”

Martinez worked closely with up to 250 nursing majors each semester.

“Before Internet registration, I registered all of them. I felt like it was my job to help keep them on the right track and make sure they get into clinicals,” said Martinez. “I taught in junior high and worked with homebound students, so working closely with students is my background.”

Martinez is involved in church and civic activities in Leesville and has been a member of the Leesville City Council for 10 years.

Prior to becoming executive director of the Leesville-Fort Polk campus, Monk was a faculty member for almost 20 years, teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in computer science, education, educational leadership and educational psychology.

Monk was a teacher at West Leesville Elementary and Leesville High School before being named Vernon Parish’s curriculum director in 1981. In 1988, he was selected as assistant superintendent for curriculum, instruction, in-service and professional personnel. Monk held that position until 1999.

Monk received a bachelor’s degree, a master’s in business education and distributive education and a doctorate in secondary teaching, supervision and administration from Northwestern State. He did additional post-doctoral study at UCLA, Peabody Teacher’s College of Vanderbilt University and Northeast Louisiana University.