Rutgers University has recognized four SASN faculty members this year as part of its 2022–'23 Annual Faculty Year End Awards. The awardees were selected by their colleagues for exceptional contributions to teaching, research and public service.
Associate Professor Alice Elliot Dark, of RU-N's English department and MFA Program in Creative Writing, and the author of the recent novel Fellowship Point, which has earned wide acclaim, received the Warren I. Susman Award for Excellence in Teaching. Named in honor of the noted historian and Rutgers University professor, Warren I. Susman, this award is given annually to tenured faculty members in recognition of outstanding service in stimulating and guiding the intellectual development of students at Rutgers University.
"This award is deeply meaningful to me because I have aspired to be a good teacher and worked hard at it. I want my students to fulfill their dreams of writing well, to love reading, and above all to have confidence in how they experience texts," said Dark. "I'm grateful to Rutgers for giving me the opportunity to write my own courses and to develop based on experience."
Anastasiia Tsvietkova, Associate Professor in the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science who specializes in Low-dimensional Topology and Geometry, was given the Board of Trustees Research Fellowship for Scholarly Excellence, which recognizes the exceptional research accomplishments of newly promoted and tenured (as of July 1, 2023) faculty members.
"I am grateful to the members of Mathematics and Computer Science Department at Rutgers-Newark, who created supportive environment conducive to research," Tsvietkova said." I am also grateful to many of my colleagues outside of the department and to my family. I am honored to receive this award, and I feel that Rutgers' continued attention to research on all its campuses is very important."
Ashaki Rouff, Associate Professor of Earth & Environmental Sciences, who also serves as Associate Director of the P3 Collaboratory, won this year’s Presidential Outstanding Faculty Scholar Award, which honors tenured faculty members whose breadth of academic portfolios reflect outstanding research, scholarship, or creative work, as well as truly outstanding contributions to teaching along with extensive service to the Rutgers community and beyond. and beyond. Rouff’s research explores the behavior of inorganic and organic contaminants in aqueous geochemical (soil, sediment) and engineered (wastewaters) settings.
"I'm truly honored to have received this award. I'm so grateful for the recognition and dedicate this achievement to my family and all of my students," said Rouff.
And finally, Steven Elliott, Part Time Lecturer II in SASN’s Department of History, received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Teaching by a Part-Time Lecturer. This award honors part-time lecturers (PTLs) or adjunct faculty from any discipline who have demonstrated excellence in classroom instruction. Important attributes for consideration include exceptional creativity and/or curricular, pedagogical, or experiential innovations; a deep commitment to excellence in classroom instruction; and demonstrable contributions to student learning and advancement. This award especially recognizes the longer-term institutional impacts that exceptional PTLs may have on strengthening the academic fabric and vitality of programs through their successive teaching at the university over multiple years.
"I am deeply honored that my colleagues and students saw fit to nominate me for this award" said Elliot. " Teaching at Rutgers since 2016 has been a wonderful experience. I am frequently impressed by the diligence, compassion, and thoughtfulness of our students, and it's a privilege to continue to work with them. I've worked hard to improve my pedagogy, and it's gratifying to be recognized for this work."