Indianapolis, IN (June 2015) – University College is pleased to announce that four faculty members received the bronze Gateway to Graduation Teaching Academy award at the faculty assembly this spring. The recipients of the award were Nancy Goldfarb from the School of Liberal Arts, and Hongqiu Zhao, Mike Yard, and Gina Londino from the School of Science. Kate Thedwall, director of the Gateway to Graduation Teaching Academy, presented the awards along with Kathy E. Johnson, dean of University College.
To be eligible for the bronze award, faculty members were required to submit a philosophy of teaching statement and attend four professional development workshops, seminars, webinars, or symposiums. The professional development opportunities are available through the Gateway to Graduation program, the Center for Teaching and Learning, the Center for Service and Learning, the Office of Faculty Affairs and Professional Development (medicine), or an approved faculty development event.
Depending on the school in which they teach, faculty can use the awards as documented evidence of engaging in professional development related to teaching or as a component of a promotion dossier.
Goldfarb is a senior lecturer and has a joint appointment with the Department of English and University College. She teaches courses for first-year seminar and themed learning community classes. Zhao, lecturer, participates in the gateway technology community. Yard leads the health professions program of the themed learning community classes, while Londino is a lecturer in forensic chemistry.
Londino summed up the honorees feelings about Gateway to Graduation program director Thedwall by commenting, “Kate is great! She is definitely very supportive of gateway faculty and informs us of what is going on in the university with all the different changes.… She is a great communicator.”
The Gateway to Graduation Teaching Academy is a program which recognizes and supports faculty in a variety of ways from professional development to university commitment. To learn more about the Gateway to Graduation Teaching Academy, please go to: due.iupui.edu.