Innovation, Excellence in Teaching to be Lauded at CTE Celebration

Faculty members and future college educators are among those who will be honored for innovation and teaching excellence at the Center for Teaching Excellence’s (CTE) annual Celebration of Teaching Excellence on Wednesday, April 3, at 3:30 p.m. in the Power Center Ballroom. The awards, which will be conferred by Provost Dr. Ralph Pearson, include the Creative Teaching Award and the Graduate Student Award for Excellence in Teaching.

The Creative Teaching award recognizes faculty who have implemented innovative ways of teaching and have assessed the impact that these methods have on student learning. The innovation may have been used at other institutions or in other fields, but must be newly adapted into the honorees’ courses at Duquesne. This year’s awardees are:

  • Dr. Jeffrey Evanseck, professor; Fr. Joseph Lauritis Chair of Teaching and Technology, Bayer School of Natural and Environmental Sciences
  • Marcia Rapchak, instruction librarian, and Ava Cipri, instructor of writing, McAnulty College and Graduate School of Liberal Arts
  • Dr. Jamie McConaha, assistant professor of pharmacy practice and Dr. Holly Lassila, assistant professor, Mylan School of Pharmacy
  • Dr. Cynthia Walters, assistant clinical professor, and Dr. Yvonne Weideman, assistant professor, School of Nursing.

The Graduate Student Excellence in Teaching Award promotes and rewards teaching effectiveness by current graduate students and provides award nominees with training on how to present evidence of teaching excellence. The award portfolios are evaluated for mastery of the basics of teaching, professional interactions with colleagues about college teaching and the ability to reflect on teaching and apply feedback. The award recipients are:

  • Julie Futrell, psychology
  • Akshata Nevrekar, pharmacy
  • Kimberly Rosmus, chemistry
  • Emily Rutter, English.

Certificate of University Teaching recipients, workshop presenters, award committee members, faculty near-peer mentors and CTE advisory groups will also be recognized at the event. The CTE will also honor four colleagues with the Spirit of CTE recognition.

The Celebration of Teaching Excellence is open to the public. For more information, call 412.396.5177 or email cte@duq.edu.