Faculty Spring Celebration 2022
The Office of Teaching and Learning hosted a Spring Teaching Celebration in May 2022. This spring we invited faculty to nominate themselves or a peer for recognition of their teaching accomplishments, points of pride, or challenges that were overcome in the classroom throughout the 2021-2022 academic year.
Help us acknowledge DU’s incredible faculty and honor their dedication to challenge, support, and nurture our students.
Dr. Sarah Bexell
Clinical Associate Professor
Graduate School of Social Work
Graduate School of Social Work
Dr. Sarah Bexell
Sarah displays such compassion and caring in her work with students which has been essential in the past couple of years through Covid. She comes to her classroom with passion, innovation and such expertise along with this compassion that her students are lucky to have her.
Dr. Sara Chatfield
Assistant Professor
Political Science
Political Science
Dr. Sara Chatfield
Sarah redesigned her FSEM this year to incorporate an ePortfolio project into the course, where students worked in groups to research legislation related to our course topic and then created multimedia ePortfolios that showcased their research and their reflections on the 4D experience.
Dr. Santhosh Chandrashekar
Assistant Professor
Department of Communication Studies
Department of Communication Studies
CAHSS Career Champion Nominee
Dr. Maria del Carmen Salazar
Clinical Associate Professor
Higher Education
Morgridge College of Education
Faculty Co-Director
4-Dimensional Experience
Higher Education
Morgridge College of Education
Faculty Co-Director
4-Dimensional Experience
Dr. Maria del Carmen Salazar
Maria models a humanizing pedagogy through high standards, treating students with dignity and respect, and always modeling a critical consciousness. Her ability to dig deeper and critically on an assortment of topics and her practice of humanizing pedagogy is impressive.
Dr Robert M. Dores
Professor
Political Sciences
Political Sciences
Dr. Robert M. Dores
Bob is widely recognized as one of, if not the best, teacher in our department. His Endocrinology course is an upper level class for our Biology majors that routinely receives the highest student evaluations in biology. Students consistently remark to me what an exceptional course Endocrinology is and that Dr. Dores is an exceptional instructor.
Dr. Aaron Duncan
Director
Masters in Digital Leadership Assistant Teaching Professor
Daniels College of Business
Masters in Digital Leadership Assistant Teaching Professor
Daniels College of Business
Dr. Aaron Duncan
Aaron has great energy and sense of humor that students appreciate. He taught 6 classes during part of the pandemic and always made time for his students. As a colleague, I was impressed with his dedication and his constant energy. To teach so many courses during such a chaotic time is amazing.
Dr. Kathryn Fox
Assistant Professor
Department of Psychology
Department of Psychology
Dr. Kathryn Fox
CAHSS Career Champion Nominee
Dr. Keith Gehring
Associate Teaching Professor
Josef Korbel School of International Studies
Josef Korbel School of International Studies
Dr. Keith Gehring
Keith is an incredible professional who receives outstanding classroom evaluations. He teaches very complex courses at the undergrad level here at Korbel, including taking complex forecasting models that are normally only the subject of coursework at the graduate level but successfully translating them to the undergraduate level.
Dr. Jennifer Ghormley
Affiliate Professor
School of Art & Art History
School of Art & Art History
Dr. Jennifer Ghormley
CAHSS Career Champion Nominee
Colleen Gibley-Reed
Adjunct Faculty Member
Graduate School of Social Work
Graduate School of Social Work
Colleen Gibley-Reed
Colleen has been a long standing adjunct with GSSW and the coordinator for our Power, Privilege and Oppression course. Colleen provides support to other instructors who teach this course and assists in navigating difficult conversations with incredible respect and knowledge around social justice. There isn’t one specific thing Colleen does it involves bringing her whole self at all times.
Dr. Brian Gonzales
Concentration Coordinator
MH & Online MH & Trauma Concentrations
Graduate School of Social Work
MH & Online MH & Trauma Concentrations
Graduate School of Social Work
Dr. Brian Gonzales
Faculty Fellow
Dr. Neil Gowensmith
Associate Professor
Graduate School of Professional Psychology
Director
Denver FIRST
Graduate School of Professional Psychology
Director
Denver FIRST
Dr. Neil Gowensmith
Neil has risen to the challenges of COVID with innovative teaching practices, adapting
his courses to meet students “where they are,” sometimes literally (e.g., offering optional, socially distanced, small group walks to check in with students).
Dr. Gillian Gower
Visiting Teaching Assistant Professor of Musicology, Lamont School of Music
Dr. Gillian Gower
Dr. Carol Helstosky
Associate Professor
Department of History
Department of History
Dr. Carol Helstosky
CAHSS Career Champion Nominee
Kiersten Ann Hillkirk, MA
Adjunct Professor of Spanish
Center for World Languages & Cultures
Center for World Languages & Cultures
Kiersten Ann Hillkirk, MA
Kiersten is an absolute bastion of support for her students. She goes well above and
beyond the requirements of her position by constantly checking in on students, offering emotional support, putting huge amounts of effort into getting students who are behind
caught up, etc.
Dr. Jason O. Jeffries
Assistant Professor
of Religion in the Americas
Department of Religious Studies
of Religion in the Americas
Department of Religious Studies
Dr. Jason O. Jeffries
Jason is the kind of teacher that students talk about without prompting, and mention with both reverence and affection. His erudition is matched by his commitment to supporting student learning, at the undergraduate and graduate levels, through thoughtful and inclusive pedagogy.
Dr. Bobbie Kite
Associate Dean
for Academic Operations & Affairs
University College
for Academic Operations & Affairs
University College
Dr. Bobbie Kite
Faculty Fellow
Odette Kugler
French Instructor
World Languages & Cultures
World Languages & Cultures
Odette Kugler
Odette’s enthusiasm, energy, knowledge, and attention to being inclusive make her a phenomenal instructor. A student wrote “She has a talent for grasping the attention of everyone in the room and making them feel welcomed and encouraged to learn and contribute.”
Dr. Clayton Kuklick
Clinical Associate Professor
Master of Arts in Sport Coaching
Graduate School of Professional Psychology
Master of Arts in Sport Coaching
Graduate School of Professional Psychology
Dr. Clayton Kuklick
Clayton is an extraordinaire teacher and support of others teaching development. He is always there when OTL asks him to share, present, or use his materials for demonstrations. He scores near perfect on almost every measure. More impressively, he uses this feedback to improve his courses.
Dr. Seth Masket
Professor
Political Science
Political Science
Dr. Seth Masket
CAHSS Career Champion Nominee
Dr. Paul Michalec
Clinical Professor
Teaching and Learning Sciences
Morgridge College of Education
Teaching and Learning Sciences
Morgridge College of Education
Dr. Paul Michalec
Faculty Fellow
Julianne Mitchell
LCSW Clinical Associate Professor Coordinator for GSSW
Children and Youth Concentration
Graduate School of Social Work
Children and Youth Concentration
Graduate School of Social Work
Julianne Mitchell
Julianne brings such heart to her classroom and is passionate about her work with Children and Youth. Julianne is dedicated to her students and advisees and brings a depth of compassion to their learning and support needs. Julianne brings a thoughtfulness also to her teaching and is intentional in how she approaches her work.
Dr. Julie Morris
Associate Teaching Professor Department of Biological Sciences
Dr. Julie Morris
Julie is a brilliant and beloved teacher. She is dedicated to her students which includes insuring her students appreciate and understand biology as she does. She teaches required undergraduate courses and receives outstanding student evaluations. She is also a teaching mentor to her faculty colleagues.
Kara Neu
Visiting Teaching Assistant Professor
Josef Korbel School of International Studies
Josef Korbel School of International Studies
Kara Neu
Dr. Lina Reznicek-Parrado
Teaching Assistant Professor
Department of Spanish Language Literary
Cultural Studies Director
Program for Spanish Heritage/Bilingual Speakers
Department of Spanish Language Literary
Cultural Studies Director
Program for Spanish Heritage/Bilingual Speakers
Dr. Lina Reznicek-Parrado
Lina is dedicated to constantly improving how to teach in ways that make a difference to student’s lives, and because I have seen the results of her dedication in my students. Lina has positively impacted her students beyond the academic specifics of the courses she teaches, embodying the teaching excellence we aspire to at DU.
Dr. Laura Sponsler
Clinical Associate Professor
Higher Education
Morgridge College of Education
Faculty Co-Director
4-Dimensional Experience
Higher Education
Morgridge College of Education
Faculty Co-Director
4-Dimensional Experience
Dr. Laura Sponsler
Faculty Fellow
Dr. Suter
Professor
department of Communication Studies
department of Communication Studies
Dr. Elizabeth Suter
Dr. Suter teaches ASEM 2696: Communication & Adoption which introduces DU students to the racial
disparities, class inequalities, and intersecting issues of gender and sexual orientation at play in US
domestic and transnational adoption and fosterage systems.
Dr. Steve Wiest
Professor
Lamont Schoolof Music
Lamont School
Dr. Steve Wiest
CAHSS Career Champion Nominee
