2021 CASS Awards for Excellence in Education
2021 proved to be another turbulent year in which our educators continued to demonstrate their ability to adapt to digital learning, while simultaneously introducing innovative means to keep students engaged and focused. The CASS community would like to thank our colleagues who support and inspire our students.
The College of Arts and Social Sciences Awards for Excellence in Education recognise our most outstanding teachers who have shown sustained commitment to the delivery of quality teaching - especially during these unprecedented times.
Congratulations to our 2021 Award recipients.
Awards for Teaching Excellence
The CASS Awards for Teaching Excellence celebrate the College’s most outstanding teachers in their fields. The awards recognise teachers renowned for excellence in teaching, who have made a broad and deep contribution to enhancing the quality of learning and teaching in higher education at CASS.
Professor Simone Dennis
Winner
Associate Dean of Engagement, Impact and Innovation, CASS Professor in Anthropology, School of Archaeology and Anthropology
"Teaching is central to my academic identity. One of my greatest pleasures as an academic is to see my students develop into independent researchers. I am always ambitious for them to take deep dive into the rich complexities of philosophical thought, and I find it is necessary to use a wide range of means to draw them into experimenting with ideas." Professor Simone Dennis
"Students raved about the course in tutorials, and would let me know how much it was changing how they see the world. Fiona made a deep impact not just in their lives, though. She was the most inspiring and concerned convener I have come across…" Anonymous nominator
Associate Professor Fiona Jenkins
Winner
Associate Professor of Philosophy and Convenor ANU Gender Institute
"Being able to know how you know something, seeing that unique knowledge as an important piece of a repository that near and far located others can use, and understanding what it can be used for, positions students as individual and collective producers of the next generation of research learning. And, it values their contributions alongside expert contributions -- rather than as the result of them." Associate Professor Fiona Jenkins
"I think most of all she made the subject incredibly approachable and everyday, and that was really empowering because it helped people go out and learn through observing things unique to their own lives..." Anonymous nominator
Dr Stacey Ward
Winner, Early Career Award
Biological Anthropology – School of Archaeology and Anthropology
"My student-centred approach is driven by equitable core beliefs: Everyone deserves respect, understanding, and the opportunity to learn; yet these will all look different for everyone." Dr Stacey Ward
Associate Professor Rosanne Kennedy
Highly Commended
Literary Studies and Gender Sexuality & Culture, School of Literature, Languages and Linguistics
"I teach what I research, and value students as co-researchers in a collaborative learning journey." Associate Professor Rosanne Kennedy
Dr Julieanne Lamond
Highly Commended
Senior Lecturer in English, School of Literature, Languages and Linguistics
"I explicitly invite student agency to shape learning, creating an environment in which students feel valued and respected which empowers them to challenge themselves and each other. There is a deep and ongoing interaction between my teaching and research." Dr Julieanne Lamond
Award for Excellence in Supervision
The CASS Award for Excellence in Supervision recognises a sustained record of innovative and outstanding supervision of higher degree by research students, including honours and research students within coursework Masters degrees.
Dr Patrick Kilby
Winner
Senior Lecturer, School of Archaeology and Anthropology
"Rather than leading them through scholarly journeys, I support and nurture them as they forge their own academic pathways, allowing them to maintain agency and directionality in their work." Dr Patrick Kilby
"When my city (and the country) was battling with the second wave of the covid crisis, Dr. Kilby made sure I prioritised my (and my family’s) mental wellbeing over meeting deadlines. Not that he doesn’t respect deadlines, but he understood the seriousness of the exceptional situation I was in and prioritised what mattered more." Anonymous nominator
Awards for Excellence in Tutoring or Demonstrating
Tutors and demonstrators are responsible for much of the small group teaching at CASS, so they make an immensely important contribution to front-line and hands-on teaching for our students. This contribution has been particularly impactful in 2021, seeing five recipients for this category.
Joshua Black
Winner
School of History
"Josh is a committed, imaginative and superbly organised tutor who places the students and their needs at the centre of all his efforts. He plans classes meticulously, introduces a wide range of rich materials for students to examine, and has a formidable knowledge of the subject matter." Anonymous nominator
Shalom Chalson
Winner
School of Philosophy
"Many described her teaching as among the best they had had at ANU. Shalom always aims to perform to the highest standards and sought regular advice on how to handle any issues that came up for her while teaching. Her own openness to learning provides the strongest basis for the exceptional teaching skills she demonstrated in tutoring this course." Anonymous nominator
Intifar Chowdhury
Winner
School of Politics and International Relations
"Learning – much like exploration- is a personal activity. I consider it as a journey across challenging, but interesting, countryside terrains. Here, I am a local guide who has previously been to these terrains but is still exploring- because the countryside is continually changing, always presenting something new to learn (much like the politics discipline)." Intifar Chowdhury
Chris Lernpass
Highly Commended
School of Philosophy
"My approach emphasizes student engagement and connection to real-world ethical problems because, while ethical theory usually starts with real-world problems, it tends to become highly abstract in a hurry." Chris Lernpass
Justin Mendelow
Highly Commended
School of Philosophy
"Justin often challenged our arguments in class by providing counterarguments. This process was extremely helpful in developing critical thinking skills. He pushed us to develop our arguments further, which certainly enhanced my essay writing skills." Anonymous nominator
Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning
Citations are awarded for a wide range of contributions to student learning. They provide an opportunity for distinctive missions, values and priorities in learning and teaching to be recognised.
Dr Katrina Grant and Dr Terhi Nurmikko-Fuller
Winner
Centre for Digital Humanities Research
"Teaching is research-led, project-driven, publicly-engaged, and student-focused: we teach the value of interdisciplinary collaboration and teamwork and provide opportunities to engage with industry. We actively support gender, cultural and language diversity. We invite students to engage with each other; to learn from and value the expertise and knowledge they each bring to their studies." Dr Katrina Grant and Dr Terhi Nurmikko-Fuller
Certificate of Recognition for Education Excellence
This certificate recognises the contribution of staff members who do not otherwise meet eligibility requirements in other award categories, who have made an exceptional contribution to teaching and learning at CASS.
Dr Yasmine Musharbash
Winner
Senior Lecturer, School of Archaeology and Anthropology
"Yasmine is a fantastic teacher. She is deeply engaged with her fieldwork and brings this lived experience into class each week. She teaches incredibly complex and fragile concepts and does so with integrity and honesty, particularly in recognising how imperfect the discourse still is and will continue to be. It is an awakening experience to study with Yas." Anonymous nominator
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