The Distinguished Teaching Award recognizes a faculty member who demonstrates a mastery of their subject matter, the ability to engage diverse students both within and outside of the classroom, and strives for innovation in course design.
2018 Recipient
Dr. Danica Sterud Miller, Assistant Professor, School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences
Assistant Professor Danica Sterud Miller is a pioneer in the development of American Indian curriculum at UW Tacoma, where she has created multiple courses that support the minor in American Indian Studies. Dr. Miller’s pedagogy emphasizes the Coast Salish approach to learning where experience, storytelling, repetition and application are elevated as critical and credible ways of knowing. She developed the Lushootseed Language Institute in partnership with the Puyallup Tribe, allowing students to engage with the their cultural heritage on ancestral land. Dr. Miller’s active learning approach challenges students while providing a safe place for them to speak and be heard. Her teaching not only highlights an underrepresented field of study but engages students in a search for deeper understanding of how their lives relate to their own and other cultures.
Additional 2018 Nominees
- Dr. Alison Cardinal, Lecturer, School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences
- Dr. Chunming Gao, Assistant Professor, Institute of Technology
- Dr. Peter Horak, Professor, School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences
- Evelyn Shankus, Senior Lecturer, Milgard School of Business
- Dr. Jarek Sierschynski, Assistant Professor, School of Education
- Dr. Libi Sundermann, Senior Lecturer, School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences
- Dr. Anne Taufen Wessells, Associate Professor, Urban Studies
Past Recipients
- 2017 - Divya McMillin, Professor, School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences
- 2016 - Yan Bai, Associate Professor, Institute of Technology
- 2015 - Ellen Moore, Lecturer, School of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences
- Video "The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly of Teaching: Engagement, Advocacy, Activism, Critical Pedagogy (and Teachable Moments)"
- 2014 - Donald Chinn, Associate Professor, Institute of Technology
- Video (Keating, Kingsfield, and Watson: Reflections on the Fiction and Reality of Teaching)
- 2013 - Carolyn West, Associate Professor, IAS
- 2012 - Christine Stevens, Associate Professor, Nursing
- 2011 - Matthew Weinstein, Professor, Education
- 2010 - Mark Pendras, Assistant Professor, Urban Studies
- 2009 - Janice Laakso, Associate Professor, Social Work
- 2008 - Richard Knuth, Assistant Professor, Education
- 2007 - Kent Nelson, Senior Lecturer, Milgard School of Business
- 2006 - Cheryl Greengrove, Associate Professor, IAS
- 2005 - Mike Allen, Professor, IAS
- 2004 - Beth Kalikoff, Assistant Professor, IAS
- 2003 - Ruth Rea, Assistant Professor, Nursing
- 2002 - John Peterson, Senior Lecturer, IAS
- 2001 - Jose Rios, Assistant Professor, Education
- 2000 - Julie Nicoletta, Associate Professor, IAS
- 1999 - Linda McElvey, Assistant Professor, Business Administration
- 1998 - June Lowenberg, Associate Professor, Nursing
- 1997 - Janet Primomo, Associate Professor, Nursing
- 1996 - Rob Crawford, Professor, IAS
- 1995 - Mike Kalton, Professor, IAS