DeMars recognized with 2017 SCICU teaching award
Wofford faculty received state-wide, national and college-level accolades this spring including Dr. Bill DeMars, professor and chair of the Department of Government and International Affairs, who was recognized with the 2017 Excellence in Teaching award presented by the South Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities.
The 2017 Excellence in Teaching awards are presented annually to one nominee from each of the state’s private colleges. Honorees received a $3,000 professional development stipend during an awards dinner held April 4, 2017, in Columbia to celebrate higher education and teaching excellence at SCICU’s member independent colleges and universities.
DeMars teaches courses in Middle East politics, American foreign policy, the politics of the United Nations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in world politics, nuclear weapons, leadership and globalization in South Carolina, and the “new space race.” As chair of the department he spearheaded efforts to create a new major and minor in international affairs in 2016, leading also to the renaming of the department.
Johnson and Miles named American Council on Education Fellows
Two Wofford College professors have been named American Council on Education (ACE) Fellows for the 2017-18 academic year.
Dr. Ryan Johnson, associate professor of accounting, and Dr. John D. Miles, dean of the Center for Innovation and Learning (CIL), director for institutional effectiveness and associate professor of English, will spend an academic year at other higher education institutions and will participate in retreats, interactive learning opportunities and visits to other campuses. They are among 46 ACE Fellows selected after a rigorous application process; Fellows are nominated by the senior administration of their institutions. The ACE Fellows will conduct projects of pressing concern for their home institution and will seek to implement their findings at the completion of the fellowship placement.
Established in 1965, the ACE Fellows Program is designed to strengthen institutions and leadership in American higher education by identifying and preparing faculty and staff for senior positions in college and university administration through its distinctive and intensive nominator-driven, cohort-based mentorship model.
At the conclusion of the fellowship year, Fellows return to their home institution with new knowledge and skills that contribute to capacity-building efforts, along with a network of peers across the country and abroad.
Other awards
During the college's Honors Convocation Dr. Dave Pittman ’94, professor of psychology, received the Currie B. Spivey Award. Dr. Carol Wilson ’81, professor of English and coordinator of academic advising, was presented with the Campus Union Faculty Award, and Paul Jones, circulation coordinator in the Sandor Teszler Library was recognized with the Campus Union Staff Award. For the first time, the college also presented the Wofford Faculty/Staff Diversity and Inclusion Award. The inaugural award was presented to Dr. Phil Dorroll, assistant professor of religion.
See the Commencement story for retiring faculty, teaching and other award presented during graduation.