GVSU Education Programs News
Four Education faculty receive awards
February 09, 2022
Four Education program faculty members received 2022 GVSU Faculty Awards. These awards honor the outstanding contributions of our Education faculty, and were presented at the Faculty Awards Convocation on February 8, 2022.
Gerald Brown, M.A., received the Pew Teaching Excellence Award for Adjunct Faculty. This award recognizes distinguished adjunct teachers who inspire GVSU students across the disciplines by stimulating intellectual curiosity. To receive this award, adjunct faculty must stimulate intellectual curiosity in students, demonstrate evidence of their commitment to the field, and reflect on their practice toward improvement.
Brown consistently exemplifies a deep commitment to teaching excellence, throughout many courses taught at GVSU. In EDH 182, a course for students on academic probation, Brown's student centered pedagogy creates the opportunity to grapple with factors that may have led to academic struggles. Employing a growth mindset, creating a supportive learning environment where students can share vulnerabilities, and coaching them to a sense of self-efficacy allows Brown's students to thrive in new ways. In the words of a student, “If it were not for him, I probably would not be back at school this semester; he believed in me, and he made me believe in myself.” Brown is an Adjunct Instructor of Literacy, Educational Foundations, and Technology. He joined GVSU in 2015.
Beomkyu Choi, Ph.D., received the Pew Teaching with Technology Award. This award recognizes faculty who use technology in innovative ways, including teaching and course design. By working to improve current practices through technology, faculty can maximize students’ engagement in their learning and equip them with resources and skills for their career.
Choi embraces and innovates with technology, as pedagogy drives the use of technology in his work. Examples include scenario-based reasoning and harnessing communication, as well as collaboration tools to better facilitate a practice team-based project. Likewise, Project Technologia transforms a discussion board into the basis for a narrative role-playing game. This allows Choi's students to manifest and practice what they have learned throughout the semester. Choi is an Assistant Professor of Literacy, Educational Foundations, and Technology, and joined Grand Valley State University GVSU in 2017.
Daisy Fredricks, Ph.D., was presented with a Distinguished Early Career Scholar Award from theCenter for Scholarly and Creative Excellence. This honors remarkable instructors at GVSU who began their independent scholarship within the past six years. Award recipients must demonstrate mastery in their field, contribute significantly to research and creative practice, and have earned national recognition for their outstanding achievements.
As a former bilingual elementary and middle school teacher in Michigan and elsewhere, Fredricks’ scholarship seeks to disrupt inequitable schooling experiences for multilingual students. She also works to improve teacher preparation though instruction grounded in research. Fredricks is a leader in the “Voices from the Field” research team. This working group of teacher educators and novice teachers have identified a set of Core Practices for teaching multilingual students, and will publish a book on this work in 2022 (Teachers College Press). Fredricks maintains an active program of scholarship — often centered on teacher and student experiences, in an effort to humanize both research practice and classroom instruction — with 11 peer-reviewed publications, six since arriving at Grand Valley. Fredricks is an Assistant Professor of Teaching and Learning, and joined GVSU in 2017.
Amy Schelling, Ed.D., received a Glenn A. Niemeyer Award. Named for the first Provost of Grand Valley State University, these awards honor faculty who strive for excellence in all aspects of a well-rounded academic experience. Faculty selected for the Niemeyer Award are honored for their excellence, enthusiasm and loyalty to teaching, scholarship and service.
Schelling’s colleagues share that she is a student advocate in every sense of the word. She is not only student-centered in her teaching and leadership; she is, first and foremost, relationship centered. Each student’s education (and every faculty member’s growth) matters to Schelling. She has served on numerous university committees and as a student organization faculty advisor. Schelling's professional service includes serving on two Michigan Department of Education advisory committees, as an auditor for the Council for Exceptional Children Program, and as Camp Sunshine board member. She is published in the Field Experience Journal, Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, and the Journal of Intellectual Disabilities. In 2018, Schelling was selected by the university to attend the HERS Institute of Leadership Development for Women in Higher Education. She exemplifies servant leadership a commitment to student advocacy, and maintains a clear vision for the future of teacher preparation. Schelling is an Associate Professor of Teaching and Learning, an Associate Dean for the College of Education and Community Innovation, and GVSU's Director of Teacher Education. Schelling joined GVSU in 2007.
Article photo shows portraits (left to right) of Gerald Brown, Beomkyu Choi, Daisy Fredricks, and Amy Schelling.
Article edited by Alex Jacobsson. For more information on this story, contact the Office of Certification and Accreditation - (616) 331-6650.