2024 Distinguished Faculty Award for Teaching - Dr. Tom Kwasigroch
The Distinguished Faculty Award in Teaching was presented to Dr. Tom Kwasigroch, who
has guided medical students through the intricacies of medical gross anatomy at Quillen
College of Medicine for 45 years.
As technology has evolved from chalkboards to 3D imaging, Kwasigroch’s teaching philosophy has remained consistent.
“Hands-on learning is critical,” said Kwasigroch, professor in the Department of Medical Education.
Kwasigroch has received numerous teaching accolades throughout his academic career, including two national awards, the Alpha Omega Alpha Robert J. Glaser Distinguished Teacher Award and the McCann National Award in Teaching and Mentoring. He was also honored with the Quillen Dean’s Distinguished Award, is a 15-time recipient of the Quillen Course of the Year award, a 16-time recipient of the Quillen Professor of the Year award and a faculty hooder at commencement for 15 graduating classes.
Kwasigroch’s nomination packet for the Distinguished Faculty Award emphasizes his innovation in teaching coupled with his dedication to students.
“What makes the secret sauce in his teaching efforts? It starts with his care and respect of students,” his nominators wrote. “His teaching excellence continues with his mastery of anatomy content.”
[From ETSU News August 2024]
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2023 Distinguished Faculty Award for Teaching - Dr. Jessica Burchette Dr. Jessica Burchette, a pharmacist and associate professor at ETSU Bill Gatton College of Pharmacy, received the university’s Distinguished Faculty Award for Teaching.
“Dr. Burchette is a standout faculty member in the Department of Pharmacy Practice
at the GCOP,” wrote Burchette’s nominator. “She is a gifted teacher, who, despite
the number of accolades she has already received, is committed to continuing to improve
the learning experience for her students.” Burchette was a member of the Gatton College of Pharmacy’s inaugural Class of 2010. She completed her pharmacy practice residency at the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville, and afterward returned to Gatton for her internal medicine residency.
She joined the college as an assistant professor in 2012, specializing in pulmonary disorders and basic critical care concepts.
When it comes to the classroom, Burchette’s teaching philosophy is all about meeting the students where they are.
“Every student comes to us with a different background, and each class has a different personality and really a way that they look for things to go,” Burchette said. “My job is to really get to know them as people and to try to use that interpersonal relationship to be able to bring them along in their pharmacy education.”
[From ETSU News August 2023]
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2022 Distinguished Faculty Award for Teaching - Dr. Cerrone Foster Dr. Cerrone Foster,a scientist teaching at East Tennessee State University for more than a decade, has won the university’s Distinguished Faculty Award for Teaching.
It is the highest teaching honor that ETSU presents to a faculty member. “I have been nothing but inspired by Cerrone’s passion to contribute to the ETSU community, not only through her teaching but also through a diverse number of activities including research mentorship and community service,” wrote a fellow faculty member and Foster’s nominator.
Foster earned a bachelor’s degree in biology from The College of New Jersey in 2001 and a Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences from ETSU in 2007.
Hired initially as a lecturer in the Department of Biological Sciences, Foster is now a tenured faculty member and the associate director for Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities.
Over the last 11 years, Foster has taught nearly 6,000 ETSU students, averaging about 550 per year.Foster’s teaching motto is straightforward: “What you are learning is not for you. One day you will make decisions that affect the lives of others. Therefore, my job is to help you become prepared in doing this.”
Foster teaches a wide range of courses, including introductory biology courses and senior-level classes in biochemistry. She has received teaching grants to redesign and implement evidence-based teaching practices in the classroom. Foster’s impact on teaching includes not only higher education but also projects with K-12 secondary education.
“Dr. Cerrone Foster is a beacon of hope to many youngsters, especially to women of color, first-generation college students and anyone who is intimidated to pursue STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) fields,” Foster’s nominator added.
[From ETSU News August 2022]
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2021 Distinguished Faculty Award for Teaching - Dr. Sean Fox Dr. Sean Fox, a lecturer and laboratory coordinator (microbiology) in the Department of Health Sciences in the College of Public Health, is the recipient of the Distinguished Faculty Award for Teaching.
Fox joined ETSU as a lecturer in June 2013. He received his B.S. in forensic sciences/molecular biology from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2007 and his Ph.D. in biomedical sciences – microbiology, from ETSU in 2013.
Fox’s nomination for the award was initiated by two independent students who collected more than 20 letters of recommendation from previous and current students detailing their enthusiastic support. Student letters spoke of Fox’s sincerity and enthusiasm and described him as a valuable mentor who helped to guide them both professionally and personally during difficult times.
One faculty member described his teaching style as “very capable but absolutely unassuming, successful but
absolutely non-self-promoting, an astute observer but absolutely uncritical of others.”
Fox has one of the largest teaching loads in the College of Public Health. He teaches Introduction to Microbiology Lecture and Laboratory, Human Genetics, Heath Care Simulation I, General Microbiology Lecture and Laboratory, Biomedical Techniques, and Supervised Teaching.
He also teaches courses for the Master’s and Ph.D. Biomedical Science graduate programs and is committed to going outside the traditional classroom to instruct and guide students in basic science research.
[From ETSU News August 2021]
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2020 Distinguished Faculty Award for Teaching - Dr. Brooks Pond Dr. Brooks Pond, professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences was named the recipient of ETSU's 2020 Distinguished Faculty Award for Teaching.
The award was presented at the annual Faculty
Convocation, which was delivered in a virtual format due to the COVID-19 pandemic.Pond joined East Tennessee State University Bill Gatton College of Pharmacy as a founding faculty member in 2007. Over the past 13 years at ETSU, she has participated in didactic teaching of students within the College of Pharmacy and the biomedical science Ph.D. program.
Pond’s teaching accomplishments have been recognized by both her students and her peers. For more than a decade, she has instructed and coordinated the Human Physiology course, a major foundational course for pharmacy students. In addition, Pond teaches pharmacology associated with several courses in the second and third years of the pharmacy curriculum. She has been selected four times as the Gatton College of Pharmacy Teacher of the Year and was recognized by her college peers when she was named Outstanding Teacher in 2015.
Each year, the Gatton College of Pharmacy graduating class selects a faculty member who has been most influential on their education to serve as a “faculty hooder” at graduation. Pond has received this honor six times, more than any other faculty member.
Most recently, she was selected as a Teaching and Learning Peer Consultant by the ETSU Center for Teaching Excellence.
“After 31 years in academia, and 17 as a department chair, I have rarely encountered a more gifted, conscientious and effective teacher,” said Dr. David Roane, professor and chair of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences. “Her talent reveals itself in numerous ways, including clear-voiced mastery of content, but most evidently in student engagement, where engagement means enticing students to grapple with complex material and stretch themselves beyond their customary effort.”
In addition to her teaching, Pond contributes to the service and research missions at Gatton. She is an active researcher, opening her research lab to all types of students, including high school, undergraduate, pharmacy and Ph.D. students.
During her tenure, she has mentored 51 pharmacy students through research projects. The students routinely present at the Appalachian Student Research Forum, and starting in 2012, one of her students received an award at this event every year. Two students received research fellowships to carry out a major project.
Pond earned a B.S. in biochemistry and molecular biology at Centre College in 2000 and a Ph.D. in pharmacology and certificate in cell molecular biology at Duke University in 2004. She also completed a postdoctoral research fellowship at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
[From ETSU News August 21, 2020]
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2019 Distinguished Faculty Award for Teaching - Dr. Lori Meier Dr. Lori Meier, an associate professor of curriculum and instruction in the Clemmer College, was named the recipient of ETSU’s 2019 Distinguished Faculty Award in Teaching.
Prior to receiving this award, Meier twice received the Outstanding Faculty Award
for Teaching within the Clemmer College (2015 and 2019), as well as the college’s
Faculty Award for Diversity and the Excellence in Teaching Award from ETSU’s student
chapter of the National Society of Leadership and Success in 2018.“Dr. Meier has assisted in improving my teaching skills by providing input on teaching styles, assessment methods and motivational tools,” a colleague wrote in support of her nomination. “As she has challenged and mentored my teaching, I have come to admire Dr. Meier for personally modeling the teaching practices she is developing in her students. (She) utilizes innovative and enjoyable learning activities, such as geocaching field trips to teach social studies, science or geography courses. Further, Dr. Meier does not allow herself to become stagnant in teaching pedagogy, technology or assessment.”
Meier consistently receives high praise from students in their course evaluations. “She uses her time with students to make sure each student understands what she is trying to teach, and she teaches in a way that shows examples of how we should teach in the future,” one student wrote. Another wrote, “Dr. Meier uses innovative assignments and technology to help us look at the materials in a creative way.”
In 2018, Meier was selected by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory to serve as a Solar System Ambassador and used that volunteer outreach program position to support her teaching of undergraduate social studies and support a number of local schools and organizations as well as ETSU.
Within her department, Meier is the graduate program coordinator for the Master of Education in Elementary Education Program and interim coordinator of the Master of Education in Educational Technology Program. She has published numerous articles and presents regularly on innovative teaching practices at meetings of such professional associations as the American Educational Research Association, National Council for the Social Studies, American Association for Teaching Curriculum and more.
Meier, who earned her M.A.T. at ETSU, also holds a B.A. in English from Milligan College and a doctor of education degree in curriculum and instruction from the University of Central Florida. Before joining the ETSU faculty in 2008, she taught in elementary schools in Kingsport and Melbourne, Florida, and was a literacy trainer within the Brevard Public Schools system in Melbourne.
[From ACCENT Faculty and Staff Newsletter, September 3, 2019]
PAST DISTINGUISHED FACULTY AWARD RECIPIENTS FOR TEACHING
2018-2011
- 2018 - Kathryn Sharp, Clemmer College, Department of Early Childhood Education
- 2017 - Robert Beeler, College of Arts & Sciences, Department of Mathematics and Statistics
- 2016 - Mary Ann Littleton, College of Public Health, Department of Community and Behavioral Health
- 2015 - Patrick Brown, College of Public Health, Department of Health Sciences
- 2014 - Alison Barton, Clemmer College of Education and Human Development, Department of Teaching and Learning
- 2013 - Travis Graves, College of Arts and Sciences, Department of Art and Design
- 2012 - Allan Forsman, College of Public Health, Department of Health Sciences
- 2011 - Christopher Dula, College of Arts and Sciences, Department of Psychology