Annual Reinhardt College Luncheon Underscores Faculty Dedication and Includes Presentation of Six Awards

At the annual Reinhardt College Faculty Appreciation Luncheon held on campus Friday, March 14, administrators underscored the crucial role that faculty play in making Reinhardt a true community of challenge and care. Among the outstanding faculty honored at the luncheon were Dr. Shawn A. Brown, Dr. Anne M. Good, Ms. L. Michelle Harlow and Mrs. Robin C. McNally. In addition, faculty members The Rev. Dr. Curtis G. Lindquist and Dr. John S. Yelvington received special recognition.

 Outstanding Contributions

Reinhardt College Associate Professor of Early Childhood Education Dr. Shawn A. Brown was honored with the annual Vulcan Materials Company Teaching Excellence Award. Vulcan's Southeast Division has sponsored the teaching excellence award since the early 1990s through the Georgia Foundation for Independent Colleges, Inc.   

The award is presented to a faculty member at each of the GFIC's 25-member institutions, in recognition of outstanding contributions to undergraduate education, student learning, and campus life.

"I'm overjoyed to win the Vulcan Teaching Excellence Award," said Brown. "It is great to be recognized by my colleagues and the administration. Winning this award makes everything that I believe in and do even more meaningful."

Honored for Research and Scholarship

 The Faculty Research and Scholarship Award went to Good , an assistant professor of history who has taught at Reinhardt for two years. Good, a resident of White, Ga., was selected for the honor by a committee of fellow faculty. In her research titled "Dressing and Undressing in the History of Discovery," she studied how people from one culture wear the clothes of another culture for the desire to cross over in terms of mentality and understanding. Her research was published in Terrae Incognitae, the official publication of the Society for the History of Discoveries.

"This is an Achievement that will Always be Special to Me"

Harlow, an associate professor of English, was honored with the Jane England Faculty Award for Excellence. The $500 award is named for a long-time Reinhardt faculty member who retired in May 2001 and passed away in January 2007. England was a professor of history and political science for 31 years at the College. She also served in numerous leadership roles, including advisor to the student newspaper and faculty chair. Upon her retirement, Reinhardt established this annual faculty award, along with a scholarship fund, in her honor.

"This is an achievement that will always be special to me," explained Harlow, who has taught at Reinhardt for 18 years and resides in Waleska, Ga. "Since I knew Jane and admired her abilities as a teacher, historian and colleague, I am pleased that I will always be associated with her through this award."

Committed to Values-Centered Education

The prestigious United Methodist Exemplary Teacher Award was presented to McNally.  Funded by the Division of Higher Education of the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry of the United Methodist Church, the award is given annually to a Reinhardt faculty member to recognize excellence in teaching, commitment to value-centered education and service to students at the College.  McNally, an assistant professor of mathematics, has taught at Reinhardt for 13 years and lives in Acworth, Ga.  She was chosen by her peers for this award. On receiving the award, McNally said "I feel very blessed to be the recipient of this award. I have always enjoyed teaching mathematics at the College, and am thankful I have had wonderful students to teach and great faculty and staff to work with."

Invested Energy, Time and Courage

Lindquist and Yelvington were recognized for the energy, courage and time they invested in completing the Master Professor Program of Reinhardt's Institute for Teaching Excellence, which began in the fall of 2005.  The Master Professor Program is a teaching enhancement program that aims to enable the experienced professor with a demonstrated record of effectiveness in the classroom to integrate cutting-edge information with its practical application.  Lindquist, who resides in Decatur, Ga., serves as a professor of religion and philosophy and has been at Reinhardt since September 1994 while Yelvington, a professor of economics from Alpharetta, Ga., has been with the College since August of 2001.

"A College of Change and Opportunity"

Dr. Robert L. Driscoll, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the College, concluded the awards presentation by encouraging faculty to set their high standards even higher in teaching. "If you are teaching today the same way you taught two years ago, you are not at your best and you are selling your students short."

"Reinhardt is an exciting place; a college of change and opportunity. As the institution continues to be enhanced with more training, better technology, and more opportunities to learn, we support the work of our faculty and trust the commitment they make to providing our students with the best possible learning experience."

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