The National Professor of the Year Award

In fall 2008, the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching named Jerusha Detweiler-Bedell, associate professor of psychology, Outstanding Baccalaureate Colleges Professor of the Year.

The CASE/Carnegie prize is the only national award for excellence in undergraduate teaching and mentoring. Each year, the organization selects a Professor of the Year in each of four categories: baccalaureate, master's, and doctoral institutions, as well as community colleges.

Criteria for the awards include involvement with undergraduate students; a scholarly approach to teaching; contributions to the institution, community, and profession; and the support of colleagues and students. Professors must be nominated by colleagues or administrators at their home institutions and submit several letters of support, including student recommendations. Award winners are honored at a ceremony in Washington, D.C.

In her acceptance speech, Detweiler-Bedell said her goal in the classroom is to "transform each of my students from bystander to participant to collaborator, leading them not to just observe, but to engage--and not to just engage but to create."

The CASE/Carnegie Professors of the Year were honored at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., in November. Above: Tom Krattenmaker, associate vice president for public affairs and communications; Jane Atkinson, vice president and provost; Mary Elizabeth Drabkin B.A. '53; Jane Hunter, associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences; Shannon Brady B.A. '06, Julio de Paula, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences; Jerusha Detweiler-Bedell, associate professor of psychology; Brian Detweiler-Bedell, associate professor of psychology; Abigail Hazlett B.A. '05; Tom Hochstettler, president; and Marcia Glas.