Eight UGA faculty members make up the newest class of the university’s Teaching Academy.
Founded in 1999, the Teaching Academy is a “faculty-initiated and faculty-driven organization” dedicated to the notion that “teaching is important,” said Josef M. Broder, a founding member of the organization.
The associate dean for academic affairs in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Broder also is chair of the academy.
The Teaching Academy annually invites faculty to join the organization based on their commitment to instruction.
Among other events, the group facilitates the Teaching Academy Fellows program, which connects early-career faculty with veteran mentors.
The eight members formally inducted into the 2013 Teaching Academy class during a ceremony on Nov. 5 are Barbara A. Biesecker, head of the communication studies department in the College of Education; Marsha C. Black, associate professor of environmental health science in the College of Public Health; Joseph W. Goetz, housing and consumer economics associate professor in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences; Gary T. Green, associate professor in the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources; Anna C. Karls, associate professor of microbiology in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences; Carolyn J. Medine, associate professor of religion in the Franklin College; Richard Menke, associate professor in English in the Franklin College; and R. Alfred Vick, associate professor in the College of Environment and Design.
Broder said the Teaching Academy’s biggest goals are to recognize and celebrate excellence in teaching.
“Members of the Teaching Academy are ambassadors who carry out their good work to promote a culture of good teaching,” he said.