Sara "Cathy" Larson

Sara Catherine Larson, age 75, of Bloomington, Indiana, passed away on September 16 in Bloomington. She was born on January 30, 1950, in Columbia, Missouri, the daughter of Sid and George Ann Larson.

Cathy dedicated her life to teaching, research, and service. She earned her M.A. in Spanish at the University of Missouri in 1979, and her Ph.D. at the University of Kansas in Golden Age Spanish Literature in 1982. She joined the Department of Spanish and Portuguese at Indiana University in 1985, serving for 30 years as a professor, Director of Undergraduate Studies in Spanish and Portuguese, department chair, and Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education in the College of Arts and Sciences. She received numerous awards, of which these are only a few: IU’s Frederic Bachman Lieber Memorial Award for Excellence in Teaching; Distinguished Service Award and Franklin G. Smith Translation Prize, both from the Association for Hispanic Classical Theater; and a translation prize from the Society for the Study of Early Modern Translation and Gender. Golden Age plays that she translated from Spanish were produced and performed in several venues.

Her many academic publications included two books, Language and the Comedia (1991) on the classical drama of Golden Age Spain, and Games and Play in the Theater of Spanish American Women (2004), plus three co-edited volumes and innumerable articles. Deeply committed to experiential learning, Cathy also co-edited a volume of teaching strategies for IU faculty: Quick Hits: F.A.C.E.T. Classroom Techniques. Successful Strategies by Award Winning Teachers. Her dedication to students both in her department and in the College was legendary: she worked extensively with IU’s Education Abroad program, including a year directing its academic year in Madrid. She directed 14 Ph.D. dissertations and her impact on the careers and lives of generations of graduate and undergraduate students was profound.

Beyond academia, Cathy was an active member of the local chapter of P.E.O., a national philanthropic and educational organization. She belonged to the Unitarian Universalist Church of Bloomington. She is survived by her son, Orion Larson of Bloomington; her sister, Nancy Moneke; her nephews, Tim and Andrew Moneke; and her niece, Kaitlin Moneke, all of whom reside in Salem, Oregon. Cathy’s memory will live on not only through her family and far-flung friends but also through the many students, colleagues, and community members whose lives she touched with her intellect, empathy, and unwavering dedication to learning.

Her family and friends are deeply grateful for the compassionate care she received at Jill’s House, the Hearthstone Health Campus, and Hospice House in Bloomington.

A memorial service will be held at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 2120 N. Fee Lane, Bloomington, IN 47408, at 11am on Saturday, November 22. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Department of Spanish and Portuguese at Indiana University at this link:: https://give.myiu.org/iu-bloomington/I320001562.html, with the notation “Scholarship Support in Memory of Catherine Larson.”