By Jordan Beach
In its first year of existence, The Center for Innovative Teaching and Engaged Learning (CITEL) already is making an impact on Reinhardt University students.
This spring, CITEL funded five students to present their research at various conferences, and also funded six psychology students to attend a conference in their field.
Collin Durant ’19, biology major, attended the Association of Southeastern Biologists annual meeting in Memphis, Tennessee April 3-6 to present his research on spring ephemera. Jessica Fanczi ’19, English major, attended the National Conference for Undergraduate Research in Kennesaw to present her paper entitled “Painting the Negative Space: How Faulkner Silhouettes the living Ghost of Flem Snopes” on April 12.
Freshmen Beth Day, Beau Wilkins and Rose Nielsen took their research to the 2019 Conference of the Southern Regional Honors Council. Creative writing major Day discussed “Feminist Misconceptions,” Wilkins, psychology major, presented his paper “College=Stress?” and digital media arts major Nielsen talked about “Feminism, Misandry, and Misogyny: Is there a compromise?” March 28-30 in Memphis.
For the past several years, psychology majors have attended the Annual Southeastern Psychological Association Conference and will travel this year with the help of the Center. Reinhardt psychology seniors Alessandra Viera and Pable Gomez-Grau, along with freshmen Beau Wilkins, Ben Gossett, Brandon Wix and Victoria Ross will attend the 65th annual conference in Jacksonville, Florida.
At the Evening of Honors, CITEL awarded its inaugural “Innovative Teacher Award” to professor of sociology, Cheryl Brown, and its inaugural “Engaged Learner Award” to history graduate Madeline Gray, whose historical research trip to Washington D.C. was partially funded by the Center. These awards reflect the faculty member and student who best exemplifies the Center’s mission to foster innovative teaching methods and engaged learning opportunities.
The CITEL was established in 2018 with a grant from the Goizueta Foundation. Its mission is to foster a campus culture that values collaboration and interaction among teachers and students in order to nurture innovation in the practice of teaching and to emphasize the role of engagement in learning, at Reinhardt University and in its surrounding communities.
