WASHINGTON – Two University of Alabama professors are among 15 finalists for the Inspire Integrity Awards, a national award recognizing faculty members who have had a significant impact on their students’ lives and instilled a high degree of personal and academic integrity.
Dr. Jason Black, assistant professor of communication studies in UA’s College of Communication and Information Sciences, and Dr. Guy Caldwell, associate professor of biological sciences in UA College of Arts and Sciences, are finalists for the award.
The awards are presented by The National Society of Collegiate Scholars, known as NSCS, an honor society inviting high achieving freshmen and sophomores.
The 2007-2008 Inspire Integrity Awards take place in five regions throughout the United States. Undergraduate members of NSCS nominate faculty members in each region who inspire integrity through their classroom lectures, activities and curriculum. Those nominated were invited to write a brief essay on the concept of integrity and its meaning to them personally.
Regional selection committees selected three finalists from each region, each of whom will receive an award and a personal stipend of $250. The 15 finalists will be judged by a national selection committee, who will name one runner-up and one national Inspire Integrity Award recipient. The runner-up will receive $750, and the national recipient will be honored at a high-profile event and receive a personal stipend of $3,000 and an additional $2,500 contribution made in his or her name to the educational institution’s general scholarship fund.
“The distinguished professors recognized through the Inspire Integrity Awards understand that in order for students to evolve into accomplished professionals and engaged citizens, they must pursue their ambitions ethically and honorably,” said Stephen E. Loflin, executive director of NSCS. “These educators impart the lessons, wisdom, and guidance that encourage students to develop that kind of character.”
Black is an expert in the Native American mascot controversy and, generally, in media representations of both African Americans and American Indians. He mostly researches in the areas of African American and American Indian discourses as they respond to nationalism, politics and social campaigns for change.
In the laboratory, Caldwell researches neurological diseases, including Parkinson’s disease, dystonia and epilepsy. He and his colleagues utilize C. elegans, a tiny nematode, with a simple nervous system that uses many of the same neurotransmitters, receptors and connections as human neurons.
About NSCS: The National Society of Collegiate Scholars (NSCS) is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies and is the nation’s only interdisciplinary
Contact
Mishri Someshwar, National Society of Collegiate Scholars, 202/375-5121, someshwar@nscs.org
UA Public Relations, 205/348-5320