Monday, Feb. 19 is the deadline for nominations for this year’s teaching awards. Waynesburg University recognizes three professors for their teaching excellence with the “Lucas-Hathaway Teaching Excellence Awards”, which are granted to the professors that are most deserving of this recognition according to votes by students, faculty, staff and alumni. 

Waynesburg University Provost, Dana Baer, sent a written statement to the Waynesburg University community in the beginning of February, which highlights the meaning of this prestigious award.

“Continuing a tradition that honors outstanding teaching by Waynesburg University faculty, the Lucas-Hathaway Charitable Trust has established an endowed fund that provides two annual teaching excellence awards for full-time faculty members, and one for a part-time faculty member,” Baer’s announcement stated.

Baer’s announcement also detailed the nomination criteria for the eligible professors. 

“The award guidelines call for a ‘demonstration of consistency of teaching excellence.’ Faculty members should be selected who have made a distinct difference in the teaching climate of Waynesburg University.”

The awards are presented annually during Waynesburg’s charter day celebration in Roberts Chapel. According to an article written by Kayla Ayers on Waynesburg University’s website, “The Lucas-Hathaway Awards recognize faculty in three categories: excellence in Teaching by Part-time Faculty, Excellence in Introductory Subjects and History of Teaching Excellence.” 

In 2022, the winners of the Lucas-Hathaway Teaching Excellence Awards were Jacob Judy (Excellence in Teaching by a Part-Time Faculty Award), Dr. Kenneth Cairnes (Excellence in Introductory Subjects Award) and Dr. Lawrence Stratton (History of Teaching Excellence Award), according to a University press release.

Dr. Stratton, associate professor of ethics and constitutional law, looked back on his nomination, and spoke about what it meant to him to be one of Waynesburg’s more recent selections. 

  “I was very surprised by the award. It was an assurance that apparently the people who nominated me thought that my teaching was effective. Whenever one teaches in every class per semester, and every class every morning, it is a new event that occurs. I hope that I am able to tell a story that the students find compelling and ultimately useful in their careers,” Stratton said. “Nothing makes me happier than to get a letter from a student. I have one who went to Harvard Law School, others who went to Georgetown, Dusquesne and Pitt who told that my courses helped them thrive in Law School and then after. That is what I hope the Lucas-Hathaway Award represented, but it still means that you must strive to improve one’s teaching.”

The 2023 Lucas-Hathaway Teaching Excellence Awards were presented to Douglas Wilson (Excellence in Teaching by a Part-Time Faculty Award), Dr. Tracy Dohn Cummins (Excellence in Introductory Subjects Award) and Dr. Bradley Davis (History of Teaching Excellence Award), according to a University press release.

Wilson, part-time lecturer of communication, shared his story on winning the award last year.

“I will be honest, I was blind-sided. I honestly was. I had been told to be at a particular gathering, and if I remember correctly, it was Charter Day,” Wilson said. “I didn’t ask questions. The head of the department, Richard Krause said, ‘I really need you to be at the gathering.’ When I got on campus and saw my wife’s car, I knew something was up. I sincerely did not know what until I got more on campus and then realized my children were also here. Then, I started putting two and two together and ultimately coming up with four.”