Newsmaker: Danette DiMarco

Noteworthy: DiMarco was recently named the 2011 winner of the Margaret Atwood Society's award for "Best Article" for a piece titled: "Going Wendigo: The Emergence of the Iconic Monster in Margaret Atwood's 'Oryx and Crake' and Antonia Bird's 'Ravenous,'" which was published in October 2011 in the peer-reviewed, scholarly journal "College Literature." The Margaret Atwood Society is an international association of scholars, teachers and students who share an interest in the works by the renowned Canadian novelist, poet and literary critic.

Age: 47

Residence: Prospect, Butler County

Occupation: DiMarco has been an English professor at Slippery Rock University since 1995.

Education: DiMarco graduated with a bachelor of arts degree in English literature from Duquesne University in 1986 and received a master's degree in English literature from the university in 1988. She earned a doctorate in English literature from Duquesne in 1995.

Quote: "It's very flattering and means a great deal to me to be recognized by the people who are considered the experts on Margaret Atwood's work," DiMarco said.