The Excellence in Teaching
Award recognizes a faculty member who exemplifies
the Elon teacher-scholar -- outstanding in the classroom,
current in the discipline, and committed to the intellectual
development of students. Elon's mission statement calls
for ?a rich intellectual community characterized by active
student engagement with a faculty dedicated to excellent
teaching.? The selection committee looked for excellence in
the classroom as tangibly demonstrated by teaching and
administrative evaluations for the preceding three years.
Equally important were intangible factors such as inspiring
students in the discipline, embracing ways to engage students
in active learning, being available to students outside the
classroom, being known as an excellent academic adviser, and
having a willingness to teach where needed.
We are honored to present the inaugural
Excellence in Teaching Award to two Elon College
Faculty.
Mary Jo Festle
(Department of History). Mary Jo is widely known to be among the
very best teachers at Elon University. An active
scholar and a campus leader, Mary Jo always remains focused
on teaching. Her dedication to providing students with
the best possible experience in the classroom is
legendary. The key to Mary Jo's success in
the classroom is careful, meticulous planning. Each day
and every activity is carefully conceived to achieve a goal
that is relevant to the course. She approaches teaching
with a dedication and an organization that many find to be
awe inspiring. As a result, Mary Jo's repertoire
includes creative, thoughtful exercises that push students to
think about the past in new and meaningful ways. In her
classroom, students become active participants in the
learning process, thinking about ideas and historical
developments, and challenging preconceptions in ways that
require them to invest in learning. Mary Jo expects her
students to work as hard as she does, challenging them to
perform at a consistently high level. These
considerable skills in the classroom are complemented by her
generous spirit and accessibility. In short, Mary
Jo Festle brings to her students just the right combination
of preparation, creativity, support, and high expectations, a
formula that?based on the student responses?brings remarkable
results. Mary Jo, thank you for your excellence
in teaching.
Bob Anderson (Department of Political Science
and Public Administration). Always regarded as a fine teacher since
he left administrative duties to return to the classroom a
decade ago, Bob has "turned it up a notch" for the
last five years. Students increasingly recognize Bob
with some of the highest student evaluations on campus.
His effectiveness in the classroom coincides with his
extensive use of enhanced teaching and learning techniques
available with Blackboard. As Elon's first
Technology Fellow, Bob challenged himself to find ways to
make Blackboard central to his classes, using it for
discussion forums and to demand critical writing assignments
for virtually every class period. Students regularly
comment about Bob's passion for the subject matter, the
critical thinking required, and the overall challenge of his
courses. One student wrote that "Professor
Anderson is so passionate about the subject, his interest
rubs off! Coming to class knowing that your professor is
dying for you to learn is encouraging. I have worked
very hard in this class and been challenged to no end, but I
leave here with a much greater understanding and interest as
well as a renewed confidence in my ability." Bob
also recently received the Washington Center's first
Teacher of the Year award for the Inside Washington Seminar
which Bob has taught for 11 years. Bob, thank you for
your excellence in teaching.
The Excellence in
Service/Leadership Award recognizes a faculty member
who richly contributes to the ongoing welfare and
betterment of the College, University and profession. We
value the many service and leadership roles performed by
faculty. The teacher-scholar document calls on faculty to
"dedicate their talents, experience, and leadership
skills to activities that sustain, develop, and improve the
entire institution." We value presence on campus, noting
over time who does the big and little tasks that make us a
better College. The selection committee focused on the
tangible results of service for the preceding year. Equally
important were intangible factors such as a willingness to
volunteer one's time when needed, to carry new ideas to
reality, and to engage in shared governance.
We are honored to present the Excellence
in Service/Leadership Award to two Elon College
Faculty.
Maurice Levesque
(Department of Psychology). While being an active teacher and
scholar, once again this year Maurice has continued his
impressive record of truly outstanding service to Elon.
In service to the Psychology Department, Maurice coordinated
a departmental sub-committee addressing revisions to the
Research Methods course and worked on a Program Initiative
Grant addressing undergraduate research mentoring.
Maurice continued to serve as a member of the Phi Beta Kappa
Steering Committee, the Social Science Scholars Committee and
the Teaching and Learning Center Committee. If this
isn't enough, in his spare time Maurice also continued
his service as Faculty in Residence for the Honors
Pavilion. In service to the University, Maurice
completed his excellent leadership as Chair of the Curriculum
Committee and began his service as chair of the Committee on
Academic Integrity. He also continued his outstanding
service/leadership as Director of the Undergraduate Research
Program in which he spends countless hours writing reports,
planning budgets, coordinating SURF and SURE ? and the list
goes on. I often tease Maurice that he must be serving
on every committee on campus. While this may not be
true, Maurice's contribution to the university is truly
exemplary. Maurice, thank you for your excellence in
service/leadership.
Tim Peeples (Department of
English). While Tim
is an outstanding teacher and scholar, we recognize him today
for his excellence in service/leadership. Tim has many
notable contributions to the department of English,
including, Planning Committee, the Professional Writing and
Rhetoric concentration head, the Professional Writing and
Rhetoric curriculum committee, Technology committee, English
110 committee, and the English Education committee. Tim
was also instrumental in designing and implementing the CUPID
lab in Carlton, where all Professional Writing and Rhetoric
courses are taught. His service to the University
includes, director of both the Writing Center and the Writing
Across the Curriculum program. As Director of the
Writing Across the Curriculum program for the past six years,
Tim has regularly offered workshops to the English
Department, the university community, and even to the Board
of Trustees. Tim has provided exceptional
service/leadership on Academic Council and several notable
subcommittees including the Law School Feasibility committee,
the Teaching-Learning Center committee, and the
Interdisciplinary Writing committee. Tim?s competence as a
meticulous and skilled mediator was obvious when Tim
shepherded the subcommittee on Professional Status that
defined and helped implement the new faculty track system.
Tim, thank you for your excellence in
service/leadership.
The Excellence in Scholarship
Award recognizes a faculty member whose scholarly
work has made a significant intellectual impact. Elon's
teacher-scholar model describes scholarship as "the most
fundamental form of professional activity." We value the
scholarship of discovering new knowledge, integrating
knowledge, applying knowledge, and developing pedagogical
innovations. The selection committee considered
tangible evidence of peer-reviewed research and creative
activity that was published or presented during the preceding
year. Equally important were intangible factors such as
supporting the scholarly endeavors of colleagues, advancing
the University?s reputation, and mentoring students in
undergraduate research. At Elon, a professor cannot be
measured by the articles published, to the exclusion of the
lives inspired.
We are honored to present the inaugural
Excellence in Scholarship Award to three faculty.
Clyde Ellis
(Department of History). As a result of his numerous publications
and honors, Clyde has achieved national recognition as an
authority in the field of contemporary Native American
culture. In 2003 alone, Clyde published a book entitled
"A Dancing People: Powwow Culture on the Southern
Plains", published an essay entitled "There's a
Dance Every Weekend: Powwow Culture in Southeast North
Carolina", and had six book reviews published. Clyde
also had another book and three additional articles accepted
for publication. He gave a presentation in London at
the invitation of the British Museum and was recognized with
nominations for two distinguished national awards. This
record would be the envy of any scholar. The fact that
he is able to do so while fulfilling his other obligations as
a teacher and member of the community is astounding. In
his scholarly work Clyde constantly pushes himself to address
the profound and important questions raised by the historical
events he studies. He always manages to use his
historical subjects as a way of providing insight into
larger, more profound issues. In his hands, the
examination of American Indian education, white missionaries
to Indian tribes, or powwow culture becomes an opportunity to
comment on the issue of assimilation and struggle over
changing cultural values, an interpretive problem with which
virtually all historians grapple. This quality, more
than anything else, explains the wide recognition he is
gaining. Clyde, thank you for your excellence in
scholarship.
Rebecca Todd Peters (Department of Religious
Studies). Toddie
excels in the areas of teaching and contributions to the
community but she deserves special recognition for her
scholarly contributions. Soon after arriving at Elon,
Toddie was awarded the Jepsen Dissertation Award from the
University of Richmond. Last fall her book manuscript, The
Ethics of Globalization: Assessing the Moral Landscape of the
(Post) Modern World, won the Trinity Prize. This award,
which includes a $10,000 award and a contract to publish the
book this summer, is given by Trinity Press International
Foundation "to recognize and encourage an emerging
writer or scholar whose work offers new perspectives on
biblical, cultural, ethical, theological or religious
issues." Toddie also co-edited a book entitled
?Justice in the Making: Feminist Social Ethics? and published
an essay entitled ?Embracing God as Goddess: Exploring
Connections between Female Sexuality, Naming the Divine, and
Struggling for Justice?. Toddie received a $7,000 grant
from the Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning for her
proposal, "Examining Women's Moral Agency and
Identity in the Tasks and Experiences of Mothering" and
presented her research at the Association for Research on
Mothering Conference in Toronto last October. Toddie
also serves as co-chair of the Ethics section of the
Southeastern Regional American Academy of Religion.
Perhaps the most commendable aspect of Toddie's
outstanding scholarship is that she is able to apply it
practically in current ethical and social problems facing all
of us today. Toddie, thank you for your excellence in
scholarship.
Joel Karty (Department of
Chemistry). Joel has
excelled in the areas of teaching, student mentoring, service
and scholarship. As a result he is known in the
Chemistry department as a faculty member for all seasons. In
2003, Joel published two articles in American Chemical
Society Journals -- each with an undergraduate
co-author. One of the articles was titled
"Resonance Energies of the Allyl Cation and Allyl Anion:
Contribution of Resonance and Inductive Effects Toward the
Acidity and Hydride Abstraction Enthalpy of Propene. I will
not even attempt to read the other article. Joel also
received funding on two research proposals, one from the
Research Corporation Fund for "Resonance and Inductive
Contributions to Fundamental Chemical Systems" for
$35,000, the other from the American Chemical Society
Petroleum Research Fund for "Elucidating the Mechanism
of Pattern Formation in Periodic Precipitation
Reactions" for $34,200. Funds from these two
grants will be used to purchase new equipment, and to fund
student salaries for summer research.
Finally, Joel has two book contracts with and received
monetary support from Benjamin Cummings Publishing to author
an Organic prep-book titled "Preparing for Organic
Chemistry" and an Organic textbook. Joel's
independent research projects as well as his collaborative
work with Duke University position him as one of the finest
young chemists in the nation. Joel, thank you for your
excellence in scholarship.
During the program in Whitley Auditorium,
music majors Jon Rahilly and Ben Newsome, along with biology
major Josh Miller, entertained and fascinated the audience
with their marimba performance of Mark Ford's
"Stubernic."
Click on the picture to see a short video - with audio.
