Alumna started own travel company, has her own family and is still serving USU
Graduating from Utah State University was a family tradition for Cathy Van Skyhawk, then Cathy Baker. Her parents and three of her brothers also graduated from USU. Her dad, Cec Baker, was the basketball coach from 1950 to 1961. “I loved it,” Van Skyhawk said. “I enjoyed a lot of the activities and participated in a lot of things.” While Van Skyhawk attended USU, she participated in the association for women students, was a song leader, Aggiette and junior class president. She graduated from USU in 1953 in elementary education. “Nowadays, when you graduate from high school it is expected that you go to college,” Van Skyhawk said. “I was always expected to graduate from college. But when I was going to school there were only three things that women were likely to do: nursing, teaching and becoming a secretary.” Van Skyhawk was born in Salt Lake City. Her family lived there while her father coached at Granite High School. Her family moved to Cache Valley in 1950 when her dad became the head coach of USU. Van Skyhawk was married her senior year of college, and after graduation she moved to California while her husband finished his schooling. Van Skyhawk continued to teach until her children were born. She now has six children and 12 grandchildren. When her children were older, Van Skyhawk started a travel company. Lately she is phasing out the travel company and is working with World Marketing Alliance selling financial services like Universal Life products, life insurance, IRAs, mutual funds and annuities. She said she would like to continue working for five or six more years. Van Skyhawk is also the president of Salt Lake County Alumni Association and attends Alumni Executive Board meetings to decide on policies and procedures. Attending USU helped Van Skyhawk gain the confidence to try new aspects of life she wouldn’t have tried before, she said. She also made a lot of good friends and met many outstanding teachers, she said. “I think with my family being involved with USU, I am pretty loyal,” Van Skyhawk said. “You have a contact with what changes are going on. There’s a lot of things that USU needs to be proud of. It’s been good participating in the Alumni Association. It keeps me in touch with what’s going on.” Van Skyhawk shares one concern about USU – the class sizes. “When I went to school, the class size was a benefit,” Van Skyhawk said. “Today, student teachers are very valuable in the classroom. Maintaining quality instructors and professors is also very important.” Since college, Van Skyhawk has stayed busy with her family and service to USU.