NEW: Holy Cross Professor Named 2013 MA Professor of the Year

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Thursday, November 14, 2013

GoLocalWorcester News Team

(Photo: George Rypysc III)

College of the Holy Cross professor Susan Rodgers has been named the 2013 Massachusetts Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). Rodgers serves as the college's W. Arthur Garrity Sr. Professor in Human Nature, Ethics, and Society, and Professor of Anthropology.

The award, which will be presented to Rodgers today in a ceremony held in Washington, D.C., is the only national program to recognize excellence in undergraduate education.

“This is a marvelous re-affirmation of the value of the sort of time-intensive teaching and intellectual mentorship that we do at small liberal arts colleges like Holy Cross,” said Rodgers.

Rodgers joined the Holy Cross faculty in 1989, leaving her tenured position at Ohio University to help Holy Cross establish an anthropology program. She was promoted to full professor in 1995, and holds a B.A. in anthropology and religious studies from Brown University, as well as an M.A. and a Ph.D. in anthropology from the University of Chicago.

This year, a state Professor of the Year was recognized in 36 states. CASE assembled two preliminary panels of judges to select finalists. The Carnegie Foundation then convened the third and final panel, which selected four national winners. CASE and Carnegie selected state winners from top entries resulting from the judging process. Rodgers was selected from more than 350 top faculty members nominated by colleges and universities throughout the country.

“As a colleague of Professor Rodgers, I experienced her talents as a teacher when I traveled to Indonesia with her a few years ago,” said Amy Wolfson, Holy Cross Associate Dean for Faculty Development and Professor of Psychology. “During our three weeks in Bali, Sumatra, and Yogyakarta, her deep understanding of the local cultures and languages, and her contagious excitement, commitment, and perseverance transformed my teaching, my research, and my interest in global education and international partnerships—just as those same compelling personal qualities have transformed the lives of so many Holy Cross students.”