Three faculty members were named Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professors. The professorship is the university’s highest recognition for instruction at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Meigs Professors receive a permanent salary increase of $6,000 and a one-year discretionary fund of $1,000.
Jennifer Brown
Professor
Department of Communication Sciences and Special Education
Mary Frances Early College of Education
Jennifer Brown empowers students to engage in the learning process.
“They know what they are learning, they focus on how they are learning, they remember why they are learning, and they understand the impact their learning will have on others,” Brown said.
Brown’s foundational teaching and learning values center on interconnected shared experiences, problem-solving and critical thinking, and motivating and respectful learning environments. She provides rationale for her methods, evaluates and revises her teaching methods, finds ways to build up her students and encourages mentoring interactions.
In her time at UGA, Brown has taught more than 200 courses, including required undergraduate and master’s courses in communication sciences and disorders, First- Year Odyssey seminars, GradFIRST seminars, experiential learning courses and undergraduate and graduate directed research courses.
Brown strives to integrate teaching, research and service in innovative ways. She’s mentored 94 students in language and literacy service learning, including 14 in CURO projects, and 64 students have engaged with her research in the Child Communication Lab. Her students have clocked more than 1,300 clinical hours in supervised community engagement experiences and simulated cases. She’s also co-authored 12 peer-reviewed publications with students and has received $2 million in instruction-focused grant funding.
“Her exceptional ability to engage and challenge students, her scholarly dedication to quality instruction, and her significant contributions to educational excellence have made a lasting impact on my academic career and personal growth,” one former student wrote. “She represents the very best of UGA’s teaching mission, consistently demonstrating the qualities that make teaching transformative.”
Brown’s efforts have been recognized with the Mary Frances Early College of Education Ira A. Aaron Award for Teaching Excellence and Collegiality, the UGA Graduate School Dean’s Award for Outstanding Contributions to Graduate Education and UGA’s Russell Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching. She was selected for the UGA Teaching Academy and was a UGA Senior Teaching Fellow. Brown serves as a resource for teaching, mentoring and support for junior faculty through efforts like the UGA Faculty2Faculty program.
“Every opportunity she has to support the development of our students is approached with an eye toward excellence and a goal of maximizing opportunities for those she teaches,” one colleague wrote. “Her contributions to the development of our undergraduate and graduate students are second to none.”
Moon Jung Jang
Associate Professor
Lamar Dodd School of Art
Franklin College of Arts and Sciences
Moon Jung Jang understands that graphic design has become an ever-expanding and evolving discipline.
“Graphic design is no longer about simply making a logo or a poster,” Jang said. “In the last two decades, it has transformed into a discipline that contributes to the creation of innovative, new, visual cultures in all types of communication.”
Jang’s teaching incorporates and reflects the aims of her research and design practice. She’s built a comprehensive design curriculum for graphic design education where students can thoroughly learn core design concepts and processes, experience real-world-oriented design practices, and explore experimental and interdisciplinary research.
She’s taught 17 different interdisciplinary and graduate-level courses, including four new and 13 completely redesigned courses. In all of those courses, she fosters an innovative, design-centered learning culture where students can grow as multifaceted designers and maximize their professional experience.
“Through her creative and collaborative approach to design thinking and instruction, Moon engages students in stimulating exercises that prepare their minds for the challenges that lie beyond college. She teaches the visual narrative and design systems that are foundational to strong graphic communication while bringing contemporary research, technology and guest speakers to foster innovative ideas in her design lab,” one former student wrote. “Beyond the classroom, Moon encourages and provides opportunities for students to evolve their skills through mentorships, connect with design professionals at gatherings, and expand their potential with design internships and apprenticeships.”
Jang’s work extends across disciplines. She’s built a strong collaboration with David Gray, a professor in the college’s mathematics department, which led to a $2.5 million grant to educate graphic designers and advanced mathematicians to present innovative mathematical ideas in narrative forms in both 2- and 3-dimensional space. Their work on a course titled “Mathematics Outreach Design,” in which they worked with students from mathematics, design, art, computer science and mathematics education to produce visual objects illustrating research-level topics in mathematics, earned UGA’s
Creative Teaching Medal in 2020.
“Professor Jang is a teacher who brings both rigor and generosity to her work. Her classes are known for fostering critical thinking, experimentation and deep engagement with contemporary design practices. What stands out most about Moon’s teaching is her ability to empower students to find their own voice,” one colleague wrote. “Beyond the classroom, Professor Jang has played an instrumental role in curriculum development, departmental service and faculty mentorship.”
Teena Wilhelm
Associate Professor
Department of Political Science
School of Public and International Affairs
Teena Wilhelm helps her students learn in the classroom and in wide open spaces.
“My teaching philosophy is based on a core belief that the benefits of a positive learning experience can result in successful learning outcomes. Success in the classroom happens when students feel empowered to explore ideas and offer critical analysis of the world around them,” Wilhelm said.
Wilhelm’s teaching goals are to convince students that the subject matter at hand is worth engaging with and to develop strategies that meet students where they are without compromising expectations. She strives to make course content relevant through collaborative group work, simulations, partner projects and other active learning techniques.
Her students see the relevance for themselves during the UGA GLOBIS National Parks Program. Wilhelm developed the study away opportunity for students to explore political conditions that have an impact on public land policy by visiting national parks and monuments on a monthlong road trip. Besides camping, hiking and general exploration on federal public lands, students interact with park superintendents, elected policymakers, interest group representatives, lobbyists and academic policy specialists, in addition to the public itself. The immersive classroom curriculum also includes an intensive research component.
“I cannot emphasize enough how Dr. Wilhelm embodies the qualities of an exceptional educator,” one student wrote. “She goes above and beyond, extending her influence well beyond the classroom walls. She represents the very essence of what it means to be a good teacher — one who is dedicated to the success and well-being of her students, who inspires a love of learning and who actively works to build a supportive academic community.”
Wilhelm’s work has been recognized on campus and nationally. She won the Teaching and Mentoring Award from the Law & Courts Section of the American Political Science Association and has received the J. Hatten Howard III Honors Teaching Award, the School of Public and International
Affairs Award for Excellence in Teaching, the Thomas P. Lauth Teaching Award and the Susette M. Talarico Excellence in Teaching Award. She is a member of the UGA Teaching Academy and served as a Center for Teaching and Learning Senior Teaching Fellow. She also received the Teaching in a Second Discipline Fellowship.
“Professor Wilhelm is deserving of this recognition for her consistent, creative and effective efforts to engage with students and to contribute to their education during their time at this university and as future citizens, professionals and leaders in our greater community,” one colleague wrote.