Presidential Faculty Awards

During this year’s Opening Convocation, Spelman College President Mary Schmidt Campbell, Ph.D., kicked off the 2019-2020 academic year by honoring several faculty with presidential awards for their commitment to scholarship, excellence and mentoring.

Excellence in Teaching, Luis Gonzalez-Barrios, Ph.D.
Excellence in Scholarship, Yan Xu, Ph.D.
Excellence in Service, Cynthia Neal Spence, Ph.D.
Excellence in Mentoring, Kai McCormack, Ph.D.
Vulcan Materials Company Teaching Excellence, Shanina Sanders-Johnson, Ph.D.

2018 Award Recipients

Previous Award Recipients

2018 Recipients

• Robert Brown, Ph.D., assistant professor in the department of political science, Excellence in Mentoring Award)
• Moon Charania, Ph.D., assistant professor of international studies, Excellence in Scholarship Award
• Michelle Hite, Ph.D., assistant professor of English, Excellence in Teaching
• Kathleen Phillips Lewis, Ph.D., associate professor of history, Excellence in Service Award
• Shay Welch, Ph.D., associate professor of philosophy, Vulcan Materials Company Teaching Excellence

2017 Recipients

• Richard Benson II, Ph.D., assistant professor of education, Excellence in Scholarship Award
• Margery Ganz, Ph.D., professor emerita of history, Excellence in Service Award
• Jerry Volcy, Ph.D., Brown-Simmons professor of computer and information sciences, director of the Spelman Innovation Lab, Excellence in Mentoring Award
• Ashante' Reese, Ph.D., assistant professor of sociology and anthropology, Excellence in Teaching Award
• Dorian Crosby, Ph.D., assistant professor of political science, Vulcan Materials Company Teaching Excellence Award

2016 Recipients

• Pushpa Parekh, Ph.D., professor of English, Excellence in Teaching Award
• Kimberly Jackson, Ph.D., associate professor of chemistry, Excellence in Mentoring Award
• Anastasia Valecce, Ph.D., assistant professor of world languages and literature, 
  Vulcan Award for Teaching Excellence

Newly Tenured Faculty

• Jacqueline Alvarez-Ogbesor, Ph.D., associate professor of world languages and literature
• Tracy Lang, M.F.A., associate professor of drama and dance
• Unislawa Williams, Ph.D., associate professor of political science
• Yonas Tekle, Ph.D., associate professor of biology
• Xuexin Liu, Ph.D., professor of world languages and literature

2015 Recipients

• Jeffrey Ehme, Ph.D., professor and chair of mathematics, Senior Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award
• Jimmeka Guillory, Ph.D., assistant professor of psychology, Junior Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award
• Christine Sizemore, Ph.D., professor emerita of English, Senior Faculty Excellence in Scholarship Award
• Jakita Thomas, Ph.D., assistant professor of computer science, Junior Faculty Excellence in Scholarship Award
• Anne Bradford Warner, Ph.D., associate professor of English (retired) and director emerita of the Comprehensive Writing Program, Distinguished Service Award
• Leyte Winfield, Ph.D., associate professor and chair of chemistry and biochemistry, Vulcan Award for Teaching Excellence

2014 Recipients

• Michael Burns-Kaurin, Ph.D., associate professor of physics, Senior Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award
• Jennifer Kovacs, Ph.D., assistant professor of biology, Junior Faculty
  Excellence in Teaching Award
• Aditi Pai, Ph.D., associate professor of biology, Senior Faculty Scholarship Award
• A. Nayena Blankson, Ph.D., assistant professor of psychology, Junior Faculty Scholarship Award
• Soraya Mekerta, Ph.D., director of the African Diaspora and the World Program and associate professor of French and Francophone studies, Distinguished Service Award
• Angelino Viceisza, Ph.D., assistant professor of economics, Vulcan Award for Teaching Excellence

2013 Recipients

• Mark Lee, Ph.D., associate professor of biology, Senior Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award
• Jakita Thomas, Ph.D., C'99, assistant professor of computer information science, Junior Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award
• Colm Mulcahy, Ph.D., professor of mathematics, Senior Faculty Scholarship Award
• Yonas Tekle, Ph.D., assistant professor of biology, Junior Faculty Scholarship Award
• Pushpa Parekh, Ph.D., professor of English, Distinguished Service Award
• Erica Williams, Ph.D., assistant professor of sociology and anthropology,
  Vulcan Award for Teaching Excellence