Center for Faculty Excellence & Innovation Awards Two Faculty Fellowships

The Texas A&M University-Commerce Center for Faculty Excellence & Innovation recently awarded two faculty fellowships in teaching and learning to Professor of Literature and Languages Dr. Robin Reid and Assistant Professor of Physics & Astronomy Dr. William Newton.

“When I saw Dr. Julie McElhany's announcement about the new faculty fellowships that Dr. Benavides was funding, I was thrilled,” said Reid. “I look forward to the chance to work more intensely with the Faculty Excellence staff, the librarians and colleagues in other departments at the university to create materials that can benefit  students at all levels and in all programs.”

This is the first year for the university to provide a faculty fellowship program. Nine faculty members submitted applications to the Center for Faculty Excellence & Innovation. The applications were evaluated by the Faculty Center Advisory Committee based on a rubric. These fellowships will last one year, August 2014 through July 2015. Each fellow will receive a $4,000 stipend, a course release for both the fall 2014 and spring 2015 semesters, and $500 toward a presentation of their faculty fellows project at a conference.

Reid plans to expand on her unit which teaches plagiarism prevention to students. This course aims to teach students how to properly attribute their sources, which she believes is not only valuable to the English program, but to all programs and disciplines across campus. Newton will use his fellowship to create online courses for high school teachers to expand their students' knowledge of physics.

“I am very excited to have been awarded the fellowship,” said Newton. “I look forward to developing a new set of online courses which will help teachers from all across Texas to bring the excitement of subjects like astrophysics and quantum physics into their high school classrooms.”