Dr. Lori Meier, an associate professor of curriculum and instruction in the Clemmer College, was recently named the recipient of ETSU’s 2019 Distinguished Faculty Award in Teaching.
The Distinguished Faculty Awards are the highest honors bestowed by ETSU upon faculty in the areas of teaching, research and service, with winners nominated and selected by their faculty peers. Each award carries a medallion, a plaque and $5,000 provided by the ETSU Foundation. The awards are presented annually during the Faculty Convocation, which marks the beginning of the academic year and fall semester.
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.