Warren Spotlight

Warren College is proud to announce that three Warren College faculty members

were recently honored at the 2012 Distinguished Teaching Awards.

 

	Madeleine Picciotto, Warren Writing Barbara J. and Paul D. Saltman Distinguished Teaching Award, Non-Senate Members Madeleine Picciotto is an incredibly talented and versatile instructor, and she has had a tremendous impact on the students who enter her classroom. Her expertise as a scholar of contemporary academic writing has been an essential ingredient in the development of the Warren College Writing Program's pedagogy and syllabus. One of her former students, now a second-year medical student, wrote that "Dr. Picciotto never told us how - or what - to think, but rather helped us realize that we each had the ability and freedom to come to unique conclusions of our own, which is a very empowering feeling. She helped students not only with their writing but also their transition to college life. Under her guidance, students were transformed from five-paragraph essay writers to real thinkers and communicators." Dr. Picciotto is a model instructor for UC San Diego and a passionate and committed mentor who has deeply influenced our students and educational mission.
	Emily Roxworthy, Theatre and Dance Warren College Executive Committee of the Faculty Distinguished Teaching Award, Senate Members Emily Roxworthy demonstrates energy and commitment to excellence in teaching. Her focus is on the student, not on herself, which results in innovative engagement that couples humanities with new technologies. This method is most clearly represented in her project Drama in the Delta, which received funding from the National Endowment from the Humanities. The role-playing video game encourages all ages to explore issues of identity through the experiences of racially and culturally diverse avatars in two Japanese American internment camps in 1940s Arkansas. This important work will have a teaching impact beyond UC San Diego and expands the University of California's profile as a leader in new modes of learning. Professor Roxworthy takes both her teaching and research seriously and integrates them in creative ways that inspire the intellect and the imagination.
	Lisa Vernoy, Warren Writing Barbara J. and Paul D. Excellent Teaching Award, Graduate Student Lisa Vernoy is a teacher of excellence, demonstrating superior skills in preparation, pedagogy, and assessment. She approaches her literature students with compassion and creativity and demonstrates an eagerness to put in every effort to help students learn and grow with enjoyment, attention, and authority. Ms. Vernoy's students rave about her supportiveness and her skill at instruction, and her teaching reviews are exemplary. In her consistently superior evaluations, students comment that she is "professional," "extremely helpful," and "encouraging" and that she "really knows her stuff." Faculty and students alike agree that Ms. Vernoy is an unusually gifted instructor. Her dedication and effectiveness point toward a stellar teaching career in the future.