from left to right: Marie Loughlin, Grisel Garcia-Perez, Wisdom Tettey, Anderson Araujo, Francisco Pena, Allison Hargreaves
As part of our ongoing efforts to recognize contributions and excellence in a variety of areas, FCCS has established four awards for the members of the FCCS community. These awards present FCCS with yet another opportunity to express gratitude for the contributions that advance our mission and the objectives of our strategic plan, and to shine the spotlight on those contributions.
Teaching Excellence Award: David Jefferess
The 2014 Teaching Excellence Award recipient is David Jefferess. David received this award on the basis of his strong evaluations and support from students; activities undertaken outside of the classroom that furthered learning for students and the Okanagan community; mentorship and training opportunities for students; and public dissemination and discussion of interdisciplinary student research related to “internationalization.” David’s students acknowledged David’s work as an important contribution to student research training that extends beyond the classroom.
Teaching Innovation Award: Anderson Araujo, Hussein Keshani and Francisco Peña
The 2014 Teaching Innovation Award recipients are Anderson Araujo, Hussein Keshani, and Francisco Peña for their collaboration on a model for co-teaching. The project enacted, in its successful co-teaching model and in its unique curriculum development, a commitment to the Faculty’s strategic goals of interdisciplinarity and internationalization– benefiting students within and across Spanish, and Art History and Visual Culture.
FCCS Service Award
Service Award: Marie Loughlin
Marie Loughlin was the recipient of the 2014 Service Award for her contributions to the Faculty over the 2013 academic year. It was noted that her service contributions supported the values and principles of FCCS, and fostered a positive, respectful, collegial, and mutually supportive work environment, and a sense of community within FCCS.
Community Engagement Award: Grisel Garcia Perez, Allison Hargreaves and David Jefferess
The 2014 Community Engagement Award recipients are Grisel Garcia Perez, Allison Hargreaves and David Jefferess.
Allison Hargreaves and David Jefferess were nominated for this award for their programming and hosting of the AlterKnowledge Discussion Series. The series seeks to bring people together to discuss, share, and (un)learn, focusing on critical engagements with the way colonialism continues to shape relationships and identities in both local and global contexts.
Grisel Garcia Perez was nominated for the Community Engagement Award by former student, Himayani Sharma.
“I am nominating Dr. Garcia-Perez for her outstanding leadership and tireless efforts in addressing and encouraging awareness about Kelowna’s community and integrating it with the curriculum of the Spanish courses she teaches” says Sharma.
In Spanish 301, Dr. Garcia-Perez offers a program of integration of community service learning which linked Spanish language learning to community-based experiences at the Salvation Army, the Food Bank, and in the Spanish program at UBCO.
To learn more about the FCCS Awards and the nomination process, please visit www.ubc.ca/okanagan/fccs/awards.html