USI to honor achievements, present awards at annual Faculty Convocation

The University of Southern Indiana will hold its annual Faculty Convocation at 3 p.m. Friday, October 11 in Carter Hall located in University Center West on the USI campus. The event is free and open to the public as space is available, and all are invited to attend and honor the USI faculty with their presence.

The Convocation, which was first held at USI in 2017, is a formal ceremony to highlight and celebrate the accomplishments of the USI faculty. Proceedings will include a keynote address from Dr. Katie Ehlman, professor of gerontology and the recognition of newly tenured and promoted faculty, emeriti faculty, faculty members who have completed their terminal degrees and those who have reached 25 years of service at the University.

During the ceremony, the following annual awards will be presented:

University of Southern Indiana Distinguished Professor Award 

Dr. Ernest H. Hall, Jr., professor of management, will be named the 2019 USI Distinguished Professor. Hall began his career at USI in 1992 as the director of the Small Business Institute. In 1998, he became chair of the Management and Marketing Department; director of the Master of Business Administration (MBA) program in 2000, as well as the associate dean for what is now the Romain College of Business, both until 2004. In 2012, he served five years again as director of the MBA program. As the director of the USI MBA program, he played a key role in laying the foundation for the launch of the highly successful online MBA program.

The Distinguished Professor Award was established in 1983 and is USI's highest award given in recognition of significant achievement in teaching, scholarship and service. As a recipient, Hall will receive a $7,000 stipend plus a $3,000 faculty development grant underwritten by generous donors to the USI Foundation. He also will deliver the address at the Romain College of Business and College of Liberal Arts Fall Commencement Ceremony.

H. Lee Cooper Core Curriculum Teaching Award

Dr. Sakina M. Hughes, associate professor of history, will be named the 2019 recipient of the H. Lee Cooper Core Curriculum Teaching Award. Hughes began her career at USI in 2013 after serving as the Dubois-Mandela-Rodney Postdoctoral Fellow: Department of Afroamerican and African Studies at the University of Michigan. Currently at USI, along with being associate professor, she is the assistant dean of the College of Liberal Arts and the director of Africana Studies. She is also a board member for the Vanderburgh County Historical Society, co-chair of the Nelson Mandela Social Justice Commemoration Committee, and was the founding president of the USI Faculty Women of Color in the Academy.

The H. Lee Cooper Core Curriculum Teaching Award was established in 2000 and honors a USI faculty member whose work in University Core Courses (UCC) has been especially creative and successful in furthering UCC goals. As a recipient, Hughes will receive a $4,000 stipend and a $2,000 faculty development grant underwritten by longtime and generous University friends, Ann and H. Lee Cooper III. She will also deliver the address at the Pott College of Science, Engineering, and Education and College of Nursing and Health Professions Commencement Ceremony in December.

Sydney and Sadelle Berger Faculty Community Service Award

Dr. Srishti Srivastava, assistant professor of computer science, will be named the 2019 recipient of the Sydney L. and Sadelle Berger Faculty Community Service Award. Srivastava established the Girls Who Code club, which is aimed at creating greater interest and skills development in computer programming for middle school girls. The club is working to close the gender gap in technology and to change the image of what a programmer looks like. She also established the Bro Code club, designed to work with middle school boys to create interest and skills in computer programming. Both clubs involve students representing three Indiana counties and seven area schools.

The Sydney L. and Sadelle Berger Faculty Community Service Award was established in 1997 and recognizes a USI faculty member for distinguished community service to groups, agencies and institutions external to the University of Southern Indiana.

USI Foundation Outstanding Teaching Award by New Faculty

Dr. Crystal Steltenpohl '11, assistant professor of psychology, will receive the USI Foundation Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award by New Faculty, which recognizes truly exceptional teaching performance by a new faculty member in his or her discipline, and whose primary responsibility is teaching at the University of Southern Indiana. She graduated from USI with a bachelor's degree in English and psychology and joined the faculty in 2017 after receiving her doctoral degree in community psychology from DePaul University. Steltenpohl is the faculty advisor for the Psychology Club and is a member of the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Council, both since 2018. Among other involvement, she received an Early Career Faculty Research Grant from USI to work with Dr. Katie Daniels and Dr. Kyle Mara on creating a video game to teach high school and undergraduate students about research methods.

USI Foundation Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award

Dr. Daria P. Sevastianova, associate professor of economics, will receive the USI Foundation Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award, which recognizes truly exceptional teaching performance by a faculty member in his or her discipline, and whose primary responsibility is teaching at the University of Southern Indiana. Sevenstianova began her career at USI in 2007 and is currently the faculty advisor for the Economics Club. She has served on various committees within the Romain College of Business and for the University. Since 2012, Sevastianova has worked on a sister city partnership between Evansville and Osnabrück, Germany which has benefited USI students in multiple capacities. She serves as the director for the Center for Economic Education and has used this opportunity to connect students with the Federal Reserve Bank in St. Louis on multiple projects.

USI Foundation Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award by Adjunct Faculty

Mahlon E. Powell '11 M'13, adjunct instructor in Liberal Arts, is the recipient of the USI Foundation Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award by Adjunct Faculty, which recognizes truly exceptional teaching performance by an adjunct faculty member in his or her discipline.

The USI faculty will formally process across the Quad to Carter Hall from the USI Performance Center at 2:45 p.m., and a reception will follow the event in University Center West. For more information about the event, contact Sheree Seib at sheree.seib@usi.edu or 812-461-5419.