Coastal Carolina University recognized 22 faculty members at the annual Faculty Innovation and Excellence Awards Ceremony, hosted by the Office of the Provost in Blanton Park on April 16. The awards were distributed to those with distinction in the categories of teaching; research, scholarly, and creative achievements; outreach and service; and those who have spread global awareness through student mobility and community engagement.

President Michael T. Benson and Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Sara Hottinger presented the awards to the following CCU faculty members:

Global Awareness through Community Engagement
Xinyi Tan, associate professor of languages and intercultural studies, and Shengsheng Zhou, lecturer of Chinese
Excellence in promoting global awareness across communities through Chinese cultural programming.

Global Awareness through Student Mobility
Matthew Cobb, assistant professor of intelligence and security studies
Excellence in leadership of study abroad to Latin America.

Graduate Teaching Excellence Award
Elizabeth P. Baltes, associate professor of art history and director of the M.A. in Liberal Studies program
Excellence in graduate teaching.

Inclusive Pedagogy Award
Tiffany Hollis, associate professor of educational studies
Excellence in inclusive practice in education.

Sandrine Schaefer, assistant professor of art
Excellence in inclusive practice in the visual arts.

Chelsey Simmons, lecturer of educational studies
Excellence in inclusive practice in education.

International Research, Scholarly and/or Creative Collaboration
Tripthi Pillai, professor of English, and Ina Seethaler, associate professor of women’s and gender studies
Excellence in international collaboration and recognition in the field of global women’s writing.

Public Engagement, Outreach, and Service Award
Katie Stringer Clary, assistant professor of interdisciplinary studies, and Carolyn Dillian, professor of anthropology.
Engagement with the Heritage and Ecological Interpretive Trail at the Waccamaw Indian People tribal grounds.

Research Excellence Award
William M. Jones Jr., professor of computer sciences
Excellence in research in computing sciences.

Ashlyn Pope, assistant professor of visual arts
Excellence in creative endeavors in the visual arts.

Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Award
Stephen B. Borders, associate professor public health
Excellence in teaching data analytics in public health administration.

Student Success Award
Siming Guo, associate professor of physics and engineering science, and George Wesley Hitt, associate professor of physics and engineering science
For supporting student success in physics and engineering science.

Teaching Innovation and Excellence Award
Hannah V. Liebreich, assistant professor of sociology
Excellence in teaching in sociology.

Amanda B. Masterpaul, lecturer of women’s and gender studies
Excellence in teaching in women’s and gender studies.

Jaime J. McCauley, associate professor of sociology
Excellence in teaching in sociology.

Krystin S. Santos, lecturer of English
Excellence in teaching English.

Erin Slaughter, visiting assistant professor of fiction writing
Excellence in teaching English.

University Service Award
Ina Seethaler, associate professor of women’s and gender studies
Service excellence to the University.