SUU Faculty Awarded for Excellence

Published: May 20, 2011 | Read Time: 2 minutes

Faculty members across disciplines at Southern Utah University are constantly honing their skills as educators and scholars, improving their teaching methods and advancing their fields through research. In recognition of such efforts, seven of SUU’s professors have been rewarded with the conferring of tenure or rank at a recent meeting of the University’s Board of Trustees.

Tenure Recipients
Azmi Ahmad, associate professor of management
Sarah Brown, associate professor of mathematics
Kirill Gliadkovsky, associate professor of music
Katy Herbold, associate professor of educational leadership

Rank Advancements
David Berri, from associate to full professor of economics
Eric Brown, from associate to full professor of art
Sarah Brown, from assistant to associate professor of mathematics
Kirill Gliadkovsky, from assistant to associate professor of music
Mary Pearson, from lecturer to assistant professor of accounting

“The faculty awarded tenure and rank advancement this year are a wonderful example of the depth of talent we have here at SUU,” says Provost Brad Cook. “Whether in the classroom, presenting at a conference, or performing on concert stages around the world, our faculty are recognized far beyond Utah for their excellence.”

This year’s advancing professors span several different disciplines, but each share a love for what they do. They also remain deliberate in efforts to advance their place in the field and their skills in the classroom.

Economics professor David Berri said he is happy to work in a field that never stops changing. “Because economics are in constant flux, each class I teach can be updated and changed. And that process by itself is just one more reason why teaching is so fun.”

For assistant accounting professor Mary Pearson, teaching is “exhilarating”. She explains, “You put in a lot of work and spend a lot of time trying to figure out how to best reach each student and then, they suddenly get it. Those ‘ah-hah’ moments make it all worthwhile.”

In addition to demanding teaching loads, each of this year’s advancing educators spends a considerable amount of time in research. Such efforts bring notoriety to the University and expand learning opportunities for SUU students who are able to study under the very best.

For example, according to dean of the College of Performing and Visual Arts Shauna Mendini, Gliadkovsky, a world-renowned pianist who has performed in venues across the globe and recorded six albums, “has been integral in building the size and quality of the University’s piano program. And Eric Brown is nationally admired as an educator and artist. We are luck to have them both.”

A sentiment echoed across the colleges and departments of this year’s seven advancing professors.

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