2020 A&S Awards

Dear Colleagues, I am excited to announce the 2020 honorees of the College of Arts & Sciences Faculty and Staff Awards. With the Celebration of Excellence postponed, we hope you'll join us in a virtual celebration of our winners.
2020 A&S Awards

Dear Colleagues,

I am excited to announce the 2020 honorees of the College of Arts & Sciences Faculty and Staff Awards. With the Celebration of Excellence postponed, we hope you'll join us in a virtual celebration of our winners. The quotes below provide a brief illustration as to why these outstanding faculty and staff are deserving of their respective awards. The winners of the Distinguished Faculty Awards and Outstanding Performance Awards for Staff will be forwarded to the President's Office as the College's nominees for the University-wide awards of the same name.

Thank you to all who served on the nomination review committees. Reviewing the nomination materials and selecting winners is a time-intensive process, and we appreciate your service to your colleagues, the College, and the University.

I look forward to celebrating these outstanding faculty and staff in person sometime in the Fall semester. In the meantime, please join me in congratulating your distinguished peers.

Sincerely,

David S. Owen, Ph.D.
Interim Dean, and
Professor of Philosophy

Distinguished Faculty Awards

Outstanding Scholarship, Research, and Creative Activity

Ranen Omer Sherman

Humanities
Prof. Ranen Omer Sherman (Comparative Humanities)

"Prof. Omer Sherman's scholarship is rich and diverse: it weaves together comparative Jewish literature, Hebrew literature, and cultural studies, in ways that move beyond the simple dichotomy between Israel and diaspora to approach the Jewish experience in global and comparative terms." — Prof. Simona Bertacco

Michael Nantz

Career Achievement
Prof. Michael Nantz (Chemistry)

"Mike's career has encompassed a wide range of areas, ranging from organic chemistry to analytical chemistry to bioengineering and medicine... Mike is a Renaissance Man of chemistry!" — Prof. Tadeusz Molinski (University of California - San Diego)

Muriel Maurer

Basic and Applied Sciences
Prof. Muriel Maurer (Chemistry)

"Muriel's prolific research program certainly has attracted much national and international attention, which is evidenced by her extremely high-quality publications on fundamental problems in the area of blood coagulation and related processes. These basic processes assist in gaining the fundamental understanding of changes in the enzymatic architecture in heart disease, stroke, wound healing, and cancer." — Prof. Sachin Handa (Chemistry)

Teaching

Karen Christopher

Distinguished Full-Time Teaching
Prof. Karen Christopher (Sociology)

"With strong emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion, Dr. Christopher utilizes the tools of active learning and critical thinking. Diversity, equity, and inclusion are incorporated into the syllabus, content, and delivery of a wide range of courses." — Prof. Gul Marshall (Sociology)

Angela Orend

Distinguished Part-Time Teaching
Prof. Angela Orend (Sociology)

"Prof. Orend [uses] multiple teaching and assessment techniques. While she encourages active and collaborative learning, she also motivates students to be civic members of their community." — Prof. Gul Marshall (Sociology)

Service

Dewey Clayton

Service to the Community
Prof. Dewey Clayton (Political Science)

"Dr. Clayton's availability to students and colleagues also extends to media, University, and community invitations... We all benefit from faculty who truly enrich town-gown relations by connecting teaching, research, and service." — Prof. Jasmine Farrier (Political Science)

Craig Grapperhaus

Service to the University
Prof. Craig Grapperhaus (Chemistry)

"Year after year, Professor Grapperhaus finds the time and energy to make important and lasting contributions to the university's mission to make the UofL a great place to work, learn, and invest." — Prof. Robert Buchanan (Chemistry)

Outstanding Performance Awards

Cassandra Book

Cassandra Book (University Writing Center)

"It is impossible for me to list all the ways that Cassie Book contributes to the success of the University Writing Center and the UofL community. Whether it is long-term planning or handling an immediate problem, she brings perceptive intelligence, integrity, and warmth to everything she does... She is indispensable." — Prof. Bronwyn Williams (English, University Writing Center)

Kamla Gant

Kamla Gant (A&S Business Office)

"In Kam's role serving multiple departments, she is always busy and pulled in different directions, but whenever I need her I never feel I am anything but her first priority. She has a way of making sure you know she is committed to her job and to the College and University and will make sure things get done." — Amanda LeDuke (Political Science)

Michelle Henderson

Michelle Henderson (A&S Advising)

"Michelle goes above and beyond to support the students she works with daily... She mentors students as they move from student to graduate. They all look up to her." — Megan Clifton (A&S Advising)

Sherry Nalley

Sherry Nalley (Chemistry)

"Sherry is a leader within the department. She has the institutional knowledge that allows her to be a go-to person. She is able to lead by example is and is always willing to listen." — Jason Sievers (Chemistry)

Jason Sievers

Jason Sievers (Chemistry)

"As soon as he is given a task, he does what is requested and always more. Not only does he respond to tasks quickly and with high quality, he always does a little bit more to help out the faculty." — Prof. Frank Zamborini (Chemistry)

Sarah Springer

Sarah Springer (Honors / Liberal Studies)

"Faculty, staff, and students have all praised Sarah for her consistency and high level of accessibility and prompt communication. Students especially appreciate that they can meet with her whenever needed and that she responds to their correspondence in a timely fashion with helpful answers." — Kirsten Armstrong (University Honors)

Diversity & Engagement Awards

Diversity Champion

Sherri Wallace

Sherri Wallace (Political Science)

"Dr. Sherri Wallace has worked tirelessly as a scholar-teacher to promote and advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion in her scholarship, teaching, and service." — Prof. Aaron Rollins (Urban & Public Affairs)

Yolanda Demaree

Yolanda Demaree (A&S Dean's Office)

"She has proven that she is not only deserving but is actually past due for this honor given her ongoing and intensive contributions to promote and foster diversity initiatives at the University of Louisville." — Prof. Sherri Wallace (Political Science)

Community Engagement

Lora Haynes

Lora Haynes (Psychological & Brain Sciences)

"Dr. Haynes has been director of the Resilient Families Project since 2011. The Resilient Families Project (RFP) is compassionate and engaged. It provides educational experiences to strengthen families and communities by promoting evidence-based habits of resilience, mindfulness, and happiness in children and adults who are at-risk." — Prof. Benjamin Mast (Psychological & Brain Sciences)

Innovation Award

Teaching Innovation

Tricia Gray

Prof. Tricia Gray (Political Science)

"To facilitate the end-goals of understanding of international organizations, negotiation strategies, and global issue challenges, Dr. Gray uses a variety of in-depth simulations, flipped classrooms, and role-playing exercises including debates, diplomacy, and resolution writing. Dr. Gray also chose to hold the class in the BAB to maximize these student learning methods and goals through supportive technology and room design." — Prof. Jasmine Farrier

Outstanding Supervisor Award

Tiffany Dillard-Knox

Tiffany Dillard-Knox (Pan-African Studies)

"Ms. Dillard-Knox's supervision succeeds through the combination of her strong sense of responsibility, a willingness to go above and beyond what is required of her, and a passionate commitment to this program and to the University of Louisville." — Prof. Mary Mudd

Graduate Faculty Awards

Outstanding Graduate Mentor

Marci DeCaro

Marci DeCaro (Psychological & Brain Sciences)

"Dr. DeCaro has three great strengths that make her an incredible mentor: high standards for scientific rigor and investigation, project-based timelines and expectations, and a flexible, developmental attitude toward her graduate students." — Campbell R. Bego, Ph.D., former mentee

Outstanding Director of Graduate Studies

Lisa Markowitz

Lisa Markowitz (Anthropology)

"Dr. Lisa Markowitz has revitalized our MA program since taking over. In every area, including leadership, advocacy for the program, commitment to student training, curricular innovations, and student professional development, she has excelled. — Prof. Jonathan Haws

2019-20 FACULTY FAVORITE AWARD A&S NOMINEES
In 2019-2020, 41% of all Faculty Favorite Nominees (182 out of 446) were A&S Faculty members. The award is organized by the Delphi Center for Teaching and Learning.
See the A&S Nominees