SCM Faculty and Staff Among Honorees at University Professing Excellence Awards

At the annual Montclair State University Professing Excellence Awards held in the Student Center Ballroom on May 3, two School of Communication and Media leaders were recognized for the impact they have had on their students.  WMSC Radio General Manager Anabella Poland was the recipient of the Meaningful Impact Award, while Associate Professor Tara George was honored with the Excellence Through Mentoring Award for her work as adviser to the Montclarion newspaper.

The Meaningful Impact award is given to those faculty or staff who have demonstrated outstanding service to a Montclair State University student that has impacted their life. This could have been through a conversation after a class, in a meeting, or while in class. Nominees may or may not know of this impact they had on the student nominating them.  Poland shared this year’s honor with Dr. Carrie Hamilton of the Art History Department.

According to Poland, “I was nominated by two students in my class and students at the radio station. I had no idea they were doing this, and it was such a nice surprise.”   Poland shouldn’t have been surprised by the recognition by her students.  Under her aegis, the radio station has become a much more professional and powerful voice for the university.  And, its recent deal with iheartRadio provided WMSC the potential to reach an additional 80 million listeners.

George’s honor, Excellence Through Mentoring, is emblematic of a staff person or professor who has demonstrated care and investment in students’ lives when mentoring students. They mentor by making time to meet with students, take a dedicated approach to ensuring students are lead in a positive direction, and serve as leaders in education.  George shared the 2016 award with the Psychology Department’s Dr. Laura Lakusta.

George reflects on her honor. “They all say I am much more ‘hands on’ than my predecessors.  But in the last year that I have been adviser, the students have overhauled the website, created a social media team, improved photography, added video, broken a news story about sexual abuse that was picked up by state-wide press, and won three awards in the state-wide awards for collegiate press.

“I was really touched and honored to receive the award. Teaching is reward in itself, but it never hurts to get a little outside recognition”

Professing Excellence Awards are given in five categories – Outstanding Dedication to Student Evaluation, Excellence Through Advising, Meaningful Impact, Outstanding Education Practices, and Lifelong Impact on Alumni.

The Awards are open to any Montclair State University professor, both adjunct and full time. The purpose of the Professing Excellence Awards is to highlight and acknowledge those educators who make meaningful contributions to our students’ lives both inside and outside the classroom.

Professors who receive awards will gain recognition on the Leadership Development and Campus Connections website, receive a plaque for their award, have an opportunity to serve as a keynote at the Leadership Institute or Leadership Cross Training, be highlighted in the graduation edition in The Montclarion, and gain recognition from their academic department as they will be notified of the awards.

The ceremony also included the Carpe Diem, Distinguished Student Leader, Professing Excellence, and Deans Awards.