Category: Hand Awards

2025 Hand Award for Distinguished Faculty Achievement

Post author By Dayspring Idahosa
Post date June 4, 2025

Congratulations to the following recipients of the 2025 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement.

Since 1988, the Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement are made possible through the continued generosity of trustee emeritus and alumna Dolly Hand and her late husband, Homer Hand. Through their support of excellence in higher education, Stetson University is honored this year to recognize one outstanding faculty member for the Hand Award for Research, Creative, and Professional Activity.

See nomination information and an archive of award recipients here.

It is my great honor to announce the recipient of this year’s Hand Award for Distinguished Faculty Achievement. This prestigious award recognizes excellence in research, creative, and professional activity, highlighting the significant contributions faculty members make to their professional fields and to the intellectual vibrancy of our campus.

The recipient of this year’s award is one of Stetson University’s most prolific scholars, whose work has had a profound national and global impact. With more than 300 publications, over 30,000 citations, and an h-index of 77—an exceptionally rare and esteemed score—his scholarship stands as a model of rigor, innovation, and collaboration. One nominator wrote: “He has collaborated on published projects with almost every faculty member within the psychology department, and with several other faculty across the university.” His research, particularly in the area of media psychology, has reshaped the field by challenging established views and offering a more nuanced understanding of the complex relationship between media and human behavior. His vital work been published in the most distinguished academic journals in his discipline and has also earned him numerous invitations to present his research at prestigious institutions around the world.

Transcending academic boundaries, today’s award recipient is also a well-respected public intellectual, whose expert insights are regularly featured in major media outlets such as MSNBC, NPR, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The LA Times. His ability to translate complex research on violence in media has made him a trusted voice on critical social issues.

As a teacher-scholar, this individual has been deeply committed to mentorship. One colleague wrote: “Every semester as he runs multiple studies in his lab, he has a team of undergraduate student research assistants working with him. His students get excellent training in the research process, and he often publishes with those students too.” In short, he embodies Stetson’s relationship-rich learning.

In recognition of his exceptional contributions to the field, his tireless dedication to his students, and his collaborative spirit that has enriched the Stetson community, I am proud to announce that the recipient of this year’s Hand Award for Research, Creative, and Professional Activity is Professor of Psychology, Dr. Christopher Ferguson.

Presented by Dr. Katy Webb, Dean of duPont-Ball Library and Learning Technologies on May 9th, 2025 at the 2025 Academic Awards and Recognition Ceremony

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2024 Hand Award for Distinguished Faculty Achievement.

Post author By Dayspring Idahosa
Post date April 30, 2025

Stetson University proudly announces the winners of the 2024 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement. These annual awards recognize outstanding faculty for their contributions in community impact, research, and professional activities. Congratulations to this year’s honorees:

Hand Award for Community Impact

Wendy Anderson, Professor of Environmental Science and Studies

The 2024 Hand Award for Community Impact recognizes a faculty member who came to Stetson University in 2014 as a department chair. In her almost 10 years at Stetson, she has achieved a distinguished record of community service, becoming a vital public figure and environmental champion in the broader West Volusia community. She chairs the Volusia Soil and Water Conservation District Board of Supervisors, contributes a regular column to The West Volusia Beacon about locally relevant environmental issues, and serves on two advisory panels tasked with land management. She has also served on the Volusia County Environmental and Natural Resource Advisory Committee. Her ability to bridge political divides and navigate complex bureaucracies in the name of safeguarding the region’s shared natural and water resources is truly commendable. In so doing, she has enhanced Stetson’s profile, further advancing the university’s mission and values. This environmental scientist is described as a consummate community-engaged teacher-scholar, leveraging both her community connections and environmental expertise to enrich her students’ educational experiences. At Stetson, she reimagined the structure of the Department of Environmental Science and Studies and was instrumental in the creation of the Sustainable Food Systems Program. In her nomination packet, boasting numerous letters of support from faculty, staff, students, and DeLand community collaborators, multiple nominators refer to this faculty member as a “force of nature,” with one supporter noting that her level of community engagement is “nothing short of extraordinary.” Her primary nominator summarized her vast qualifications as follows: “I am honored and proud to work with her in the same department, where she effectively

showcases science in action. She embodies a conscientious scientist who takes her knowledge to streets, communities, city hall meetings, and her classrooms with the ultimate goal of passionately serving humanity. She has taught her students, in action, how to engage with individuals in positions of power and policymakers, compelling them to listen and take action to safeguard our shared environment.  

For her professional commitment and her exceptional contributions to the university and broader communities, it gives me great pleasure on behalf of the faculty, staff, and students at Stetson University to present the 2024 Hand Award for Community Impact to Professor and Chair of Environmental Science and Studies and Director of the Sustainable Food Systems Program, Dr. Wendy Anderson. 

Hand Award for Research, Creative, and Professional Activity

Dr. Carol Azab, Associate Professor of Marketing

The first 2024 Hand Award for Research, Creative and Professional Activity recognizes an outstanding faculty member who – in her short time at Stetson University – has established herself as one of the most productive scholars in the School of Business Administration. This faculty member’s scholarly inquiry focuses on services marketing, global marketing, and the influence of the marketing function within the firm and the discipline. A hallmark of scholarly pursuits is peer review – the sharing and public testing of scholarly inquiry. The exceptional quality of this researcher’s scholarship is evidenced by the successful acceptance of 10 peer-reviewed journal articles in just eight years. Seven of her 10 papers have appeared in the most prestigious top-tier journals in the field, including the Journal of Business Research, the Journal of Consumer Behaviour, the Journal of Business Ethics, and the Journal of Behavioral Finance. These journals enjoy some of the highest impact factors, which are proxy measures of the importance, deep rigor, international reach, and appeal of the published research. One of her articles – on new rules of social media shopping – garnered the distinction of the most cited paper in the Journal of Consumer Behaviour in 2022, for which she won an award. By pursuing research projects with current and former colleagues, and supervising at least eight student research groups annually, her

students have benefited significantly from her expertise in a broad set of analytical techniques. More specifically, her work in services marketing has helped redefine disciplinary knowledge and as a teacher-scholar, she has brought her findings to the classroom and transformed her marketing courses. In sum, her work has influenced the direction and evolution of her discipline. One faculty nominator wrote, “[This scholar] is passionate about justice in service recovery, establishing equity when companies fail customers’ expectations and [are] trying to win them back. Her research is significant because it deals with stereotypes of minority customers and the use of primary and secondary language in service encounters.”

Through her stellar scholarship and impressive service to her field, this faculty member contributes impressively to Stetson University’s scholarly and intellectual vibrancy. In 2023, she received the School of Business Administration’s Outstanding Researcher of the Year Award. It gives me great pleasure on behalf of the faculty and staff at Stetson University to present the 2024 Hand Award for Research, Creative, and Professional Activity to Associate Professor Dr. Carol Azab  for her professional commitment and her exceptional scholarly contributions.

Hand Award for Research, Creative and Professional Activity

Jean Smith, Assistant Professor of Biology

The second 2024 Hand Award for Research, Creative and Professional Activity honors a faculty member who has rapidly established herself as a leading scientific researcher and whose quality of research has had a transformative impact on the field of molecular biology. Since arriving at Stetson University in 2019, this scientist has acquired an impressive publication record by repeatedly publishing her research outcomes in top-tier, high impact scientific journals, including Science, Genetics, and The Journal of Cell Biology. Within the past five years her body of research has been cited in the published works of other scientists approximately 500 times. Furthermore, she has garnered major grant support including a recent multi-year award from the National Science Foundation for more than half a million dollars. As a Stetson University teacher-scholar, this faculty member has demonstrated the unique integration of the teacher’s facilitation of students’ learning with her own continuous scholarly development in two ways. First, her involvement of students as researchers in

her own professional development has led to ground-breaking research in molecular biology, and the team’s work has led to novel findings in the molecular mechanisms of cell fusion—a process essential for sexual reproduction in all organisms. Seven of her mentored research students have won best student presentation awards at scientific conferences. Second, her scholarly work infuses her courses with research-rich experiential learning opportunities for students. This is particularly noteworthy in her Genetics and Microbiology offerings—two courses that now form a vital core of Stetson’s extremely successful health professions curriculum. Several of her students have been recruited into the nation’s top graduate programs. One faculty nominator wrote: “She is an exemplar of the way in which an excellent, rigorous scientist can mentor and excite students, introducing them to concepts they may have never considered, and making the previously inconceivable understandable and attainable”.

It gives me great pleasure on behalf of the faculty and staff at Stetson University to present the 2024 Hand Award for Research, Creative, and Professional Activity to Assistant Professor Dr. Jean Smith  for her professional commitment and her exceptional scholarly contributions.

Faculty Accomplishments Faculty Accomplishments Faculty Awards Hand Awards

2023 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement

Post author By Shadia Munoz-Najar
Post date May 14, 2023

Congratulations to the following recipients of the 2023 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement.

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This teacher-scholar was invited to join the faculty corps at Stetson University six years ago and has engaged in an expansive scope of high-quality research and professional activity with penetrable national and international implications. As a recognized expert in development economics, their work has easily transcended academic boundaries by making practical global impact, particularly on women in agriculture in rural regions and in developing countries.This expertise is sought after by global organizations such as the World Bank, the UN Development Programme, and USAID. This work significantly contributes to Stetson’s vibrancy and vitality, especially on students in upper-level economics courses.

This faculty member has acquired a prolific record in their short time here. One nominator wrote, this faculty member “has developed an impressive scholarly record during their time at Stetson. Their expertise in development economics has been recognized and sought after on campus, nationally, and internationally, and they have published their work in high-impact venues.”

Therefore, it gives me great pleasure on behalf of the faculty and staff at Stetson University to present the 2023 Hand Award for Research, Creative, and Professional Activity to Associate Professor Dr. Khushbu Mishra for her stellar, established, and sustained record of scholarly achievement.

Presented by Dr. Rosalie Richards, Associate Provost for Faculty Development and Professor of Chemistry and Education on May 10, 2023 at the 2023 Academic Awards and Recognition Ceremony

Faculty Accomplishments Faculty Accomplishments Faculty Awards Hand Awards

2022 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement

Post author By Shadia Munoz-Najar
Post date January 25, 2023

Congratulations to the following recipients of the 2022 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement.

The Hand Award for Distinguished Faculty Achievements are made possible through the continued generosity of trustee emeritus and alumna Dolly Hand and her husband, Homer Hand. Through their support of excellence in higher education, we are honored to recognize outstanding faculty. The awards have been presented to faculty since 1988, with recipients whose names many in the audience will recognize as faculty who have been transformative to this institution—Michael Rickman, Karen Kaivola, and Leonard Nance to name a few.

This year, we recognize the professional achievements of two outstanding faculty members in two primary areas: Research, Creative, and Professional Activity and Community Impact. Historically, there have been Hand awards that recognized the stellar work of faculty who have been at Stetson for a short period of time, and then go on to do great things at Stetson. Some examples include then-Assistant Professors Terri Witek, Stephen Robinson, Sue Ryan, and Isabel Botero, who all received the Hand recognition just a few years after they joined the University. Both recipients of this prestigious recognition were invited to join the faculty in 2014. In sum, during their short tenure at Stetson University, they have made significant contributions to their fields, to Stetson’s vibrancy and vitality, to our academic culture, and to the world beyond this campus.

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The first 2022 Hand Award honors a faculty member whose quality of research and writing has had a transformative impact on the School of Music and on Stetson University. As a musicologist, he is a scholar of Music History with many interests including Russian, French and Italian opera of the 19th century, Russian and Soviet music, music and politics and theories of musical form. His research into music censorship in 19th century Imperial Russia, specifically during the reign of Tsar Nicholas II, is groundbreaking and of significant interest to students of opera worldwide. His command of both musicology and theory demonstrates a latitude of expertise comprising individual composers, genres, and time periods.

Furthermore, he maintains an impressive publication record in high impact academic readership sources including the Journal of Music Theory, the Journal of Musicology, and in the Cambridge and Oxford University presses. The variety, breadth, scope, cross-disciplinarity, and international appeal of his repertoire has positioned his body of work as important and valuable beyond the world of music. To that end, this scholar ranks among the top music historians in the nation and abroad.

One nominator wrote, “Twelve publications (and others already underway) are many for any discipline at Stetson where research and publications are a measure of contribution.” Another wrote, “My career in all facets – including performance, teaching, and administration – has well prepared me to understand and appreciate exceptional individuals such as [this professor]”.

Therefore, it gives me great pleasure on behalf of the faculty and staff at Stetson University to present the 2022 Hand Award for Research, Creative, and Professional Activity to Associate Professor Daniil Zavulov for his professional commitment, and in recognition and celebration of his substantial scholarly contributions.

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This year’s second 2022 Hand award honors a faculty member who has accomplished an extraordinarily impactful breadth and scope of timely work within the eight years of her tenure at Stetson University. A scholar, teacher, and practitioner, she rapidly compiled a distinguished record of community service, becoming a key force in Stetson’s relationship with the broader community. Her special focus has been on the health needs of underserved communities including the Spring Hill community of southwestern DeLand. In collaboration with various community partners, she has initiated or supported multiple studies and programs. This work included comprehensive needs assessments of all African American communities to demonstrate the need for improved public health and nutritional resources and an Oral History of the James W. Wright building in DeLand, research that resulted in grant funding awarded and the building being placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

In 2016, she received an Exceptional Community Partner Award from the Spring Hill Neighborhood Association for her exemplary work. And with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, she provided vital community support by serving as staff epidemiologist with the Florida Department of Health.

One nominator wrote, “In my entire time directing community engagement efforts for the university, [this professor] stands out for being the most consistent and effective faculty collaborator with our non-profit partners in the greater Spring Hill community. Truly, I believe that no faculty member epitomizes the connection of our institution’s academic and civic missions as strongly as [this professor]”.

For her professional commitment and in recognition and celebration of her substantial contributions to the Stetson community and the greater DeLand and Volusia communities, it gives me great pleasure on behalf of the faculty and staff at Stetson University to present the second 2022 Hand Award for Community Impact to Associate Professor Asal Mohammadi Johnson.

Presented by Dr. Rosalie Richards, Associate Provost for Faculty Development on May 6, 2022 at the 2022 Academic Awards and Recognition Ceremony

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2021 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement

Post author By Shadia Munoz-Najar
Post date June 23, 2021

Congratulations to the following recipients of the 2021 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement.

Witek, Stephen Robinson, Sue Ryan, and Isabel Botero, who all received the Hand recognition just a few years after they joined the University. Both recipients of this prestigious recognition are junior faculty members. In sum, during their short tenure at Stetson University, they have made significant contributions to their fields, to Stetson’s vibrancy and vitality, to our academic culture, and to the world beyond this campus.

The first 2021 Hand award honors a faculty member who was invited to join the faculty at Stetson University five years ago and who has already helped to bring $1.6 million in funding to our campus. In addition to an impressive publication record, she has experienced exceptional success in obtaining grant funding, and demonstrated an amazing ability to forge strong collaborative efforts with faculty from a diverse array of academic departments at Stetson, including Biology, Environmental Science, Health Sciences, Chemistry, Philosophy, and Physics in the quest of academic excellence. Her publications and successful grant applications showcase her success in integrating cutting edge molecular techniques and scientific equipment with high impact teaching practices and novel pedagogical approaches to the great benefit of Stetson students. One nominator wrote, “She is interested in inspiring all students through exposure to research.” One of her photographs was selected for the cover of the journal Development. In the STEM disciplines, this selection is recognized as a distinction. One nominator wrote, “Her work involved photographing cilia of cells and she has produced photographs of cells that are quite beautiful.”
For her professional commitment, and in recognition and celebration of her substantial scholarly contributions, it gives me great pleasure on behalf of the faculty and staff at Stetson University to present the first of two 2021 Hand Awards for Research, Creative, and Professional Activity to Assistant Professor Lynn Kee.

Lynn Kee, Assistant Professor of Biology

This year’s second 2021 Hand award honors a faculty member who has accomplished an extraordinarily impactful breadth and scope of timely work within the short three years of her tenure at Stetson University. Invited in 2018 to join the faculty as Brown Teacher-Scholar Fellow in Sustainable Food Systems, she rapidly became a key force in the development of Stetson’s Sustainable Foods Systems program, and broad to this academic endeavor the lenses of equity and inclusion especially aimed at uncovering issues of race, class and gender in the U.S. food system. Working with other Stetson faculty and students, she has co-developed multiple programs in the broader community, forging strong connections with local elementary schools, boys and girls clubs, the Artisan Alley Market, local farmers, and the Tomoka Correctional Facility. As a Stetson teacher-scholar, she has experienced successful grantsmanship to support her craft of educational outreach as a grant recipient of the Nina B. Hollis Institute for Educational Reform and the recent collaborative Andrew Mellon Foundation grant. Her many peer-reviewed publications are strong evidence that others find her work on the intersection of equity, education and food production of great significance. For her professional commitment, and in recognition and celebration of her substantial contributions to Stetson and the communities of central Florida, it gives me great pleasure on behalf of the faculty and staff at Stetson University to present the second 2021 Hand Award for Community Impact to Assistant Professor Sarah Cramer.

Sarah Cramer, Visiting Assistant Professor in Sustainable Food Systems

Presented by Dr. Rosalie Richards, Associate Provost for Faculty Development on May 6, 2021 at the 2021 Academic Awards and Recognition Ceremony

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2019 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement

Post author By Rosalie Richards
Post date May 31, 2019

Congratulations to the following recipients of the 2019 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement.

Ana Eire, Ph.D., Professor of World Languages and Cultures
Hand Award for Research, Creative and Professional Activity

Isabel Botero, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Family Enterprise and Entrepreneurship
Hand Award for Research, Creative and Professional Activity

The Hand Award for Distinguished Faculty Achievements are made possible through the continued generosity of trustee emeritus and alumna Dolly Hand and her husband, Homer Hand. Through their support of excellence in higher education, we are honored to recognize outstanding faculty. The awards have been presented to faculty since 1988, with recipients whose names many in the audience will recognize as faculty who have been transformative to this institution—Michael Rickman, Karen Kaivola, and Leonard Nance to name a few.
Faculty over the years have been presented with Hand Awards in two primary areas: Community Impact, and also Research, Creative and Professional Activity. This year, we recognize the professional achievements of two outstanding faculty members in the category of Research, Creative, and Professional Activity. Both of these faculty members have significantly contributed to the knowledge of their fields, the vibrancy of Stetson University’s pedagogy and academic culture, and the world beyond this campus.
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The first 2019 Hand award honors a faculty member who joined the Stetson University almost three decades ago. Since then, she has published multiple books that have garnered national attention in her home country, leading her to be considered, as one nominator writes, “the foremost scholar of Spanish poetry in Spain.” Because of her established renowned reputation as a Spanish poetry critic, she is currently working on another commission preparing an introduction to the 25^th anniversary edition of an anthology of poetry entitled El sindicato del crimen. For her professional commitment, and in recognition and celebration of her substantial scholarly contributions, it gives me great pleasure to present the first of two 2019 Hand Awards for Research, Creative, and Professional Activity to Professor Ana Eire.
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Historically, there have been Hand awards that recognized the stellar work of faculty who have been at Stetson for a short period of time, and then go on to do great things at Stetson. Some examples include then-Assistant Professors Terri Witek, Stephen Robinson, and Sue Ryan, who all won the Hand recognition just a few years after they joined Stetson. This year’s 2^nd 2019 Hand award recipient is a prolific scholar with 46 publications, a frequent invited review for prestigious journals, and an internationally known expert in her field. She has presented her research in the U.S., Europe and Latin America, and last year was awarded second place in the Adalberto Viesca Sada Family Business in Latin America’s Award. In only her fourth year at Stetson, this faculty member is using her extensive research as the academic foundation for reviving the family business curriculum in the School of Business Administration. For her professional commitment, and in recognition and celebration of her substantial scholarly contributions, it gives me great pleasure to present the second of two 2019 Hand Awards for Research, Creative, and Professional Activity to Assistant Professor Isabel Botero.

Presented by Provost Noel Painter on May 11, 2019 at the 133rd annual Undergraduate Commencement

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2018 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement

Post author By Shadia Munoz-Najar
Post date May 30, 2018

Congratulations to the following recipients of the 2018 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement.

The Hand Award for Community Impact celebrates the achievements of faculty serving the needs of the Stetson community and the community beyond the campus.

Terrence Farrell, Ph.D., Professor of Biology
Hand Award for Research, Creative and Professional Activity

Pamela Cappas-Toro, Ph.D., Associate Professor of World Languages and Cultures (Spanish)
Hand Award for Community Impact

Faculty service to our neighbors not only links the University with the broader community, but serves as an example to inspire our students who, we hope, become inspired to make the world better. It therefore gives me great pleasure to acknowledge the extraordinary work of DR. PAMELA CAPPAS-TORO, assistant professor of World Languages and Cultures. Upon joining the faculty in 2013, she immediately set out to answer the question “Who is my neighbor?” more generously than most of us ever dream. Her scholarship and service are dedicated to those marginalized by race, class, nation, and legal status.
In 2013, Pamela founded La Casita Cultural Latina, a cultural center for our community, dedicated to providing “education and leadership development opportunities” to our under-served Hispanic neighbors. The very next year, Dr. Cappas-Toro founded the Community Engagement Project, offering classes to incarcerated populations in the high-security Tomoka Correctional Facility. She collaborates with Stetson colleagues in both endeavors, building a broad community for education, and demonstrating Stetson’s mission beyond our campuses. One nominator wrote “Her impact on the campus and local community is undeniable, and her national influence through the Community Engagement Project is now an established fact.” Professor Cappas-Toro embodies the essence and spirit of the purpose of higher education by recognizing and nurturing the cultural wealth of forgotten and minortized communities. This year, we are honored to present Professor Pamela Cappas-Toro with the Hand Award for Community Impact.

Presented by Provost Noel Painter on May 11, 2018 at the 132rd annual Undergraduate Commencement

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2017 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement

Post author By Shadia Munoz-Najar
Post date May 30, 2017

Congratulations to the following recipients of the 2017 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement.

Mary Pollock, Ph.D., Professor of English
Hand Award for Research, Creative and Professional Activity

Bonnie Holloway, MB.A, Visiting Lecturer in Accounting
Hand Award for Community Impact

Through the generosity of Homer and Dolly Hand of Belle Glade, Florida, the University has established honorary monetary awards to recognize outstanding faculty work. This year, we recognize the professional achievements of two outstanding members in two categories.

The Hand Award for Community Impact celebrates the achievements of faculty serving the needs of the community, both the Stetson community and the community beyond the campus. It, therefore, gives me great pleasure to present this award to one individual for distinctive faculty leadership and achievement.

BONNIE HOLLOWAY is a double hatter, earning both her Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Master of Business Administration in Accounting from Stetson University. She is a certified public accountant in Florida, practicing part-time to allow her to pursue her passion for teaching and community engagement. Her academic career includes teaching accounting as an adjunct professor for over 30 years, serving as department chair, federal grant writer, and Title III project director. At Stetson, Holloway currently oversees the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance, or VITA, Program, which provides tax assistance to low-income individuals free of charge and trains students as Certified Advanced Preparers.

Under her leadership, the Stetson VITA program has completed nearly 1,300 tax returns that have resulted in refunds totaling well over 1.3 million dollars. A quotation from her nomination reads, “Bonnie is responsible for recruiting student volunteers, organizing and conducting their formal training, scheduling tax preparation sessions, identifying and selecting site coordinators and quality reviewers, handling administrative matter with partners and clients, and overseeing the actual tax prepationg sessions….Bonnie has a great attitude, a tremendous work ethic, and is devoted to the students and to those in the community whom VITA serves. She is very deserving of this award.”

For her professional commitment and deep impact on the Stetson and DeLand communities, Ms. Bonnie Holloway receives the 2017 Hand Award for Community Impact.
The Hand Award for Research, Creative, and Professional Activity celebrates faculty achievement, accomplishment, leadership, and contribution to the intellectual vibrancy and vitality of our campus. This Hand Award recognizes that excellence is to be found in innovative as well as traditional forms of scholarship that demonstrate substantive disciplinary or interdisciplinary knowledge. It, therefore, gives me great pleasure to present this award to one individual for distinctive achievement and leadership.
Mary Sanders Pollock joined the Department of English in 1985, teaching British literature, green studies, and gender studies. In addition to peer-reviewed articles and book reviews, she is the author of two books,
Elizabeth Barrett and Robert Browning: A Creative Partnership and Storytelling Apes: Primatology Narrative Past and Future. Her most recent project aligns with her continuing interest in English literature, environmental issues, and nature writing. She also co-edited the anthology Figuring Animals, and the anthology Victorial Literature and Fil Adaptation. Dr. Pollock is a leading voice in Victorian literature, making impressive contributions to the field. A quotation from her nomination reads, “I want to nominate Mary Pollock…not only because of the quality and the scope of her current projects, but also for the relevance of past scholarly projects that got confirmed this past year.”

For her professional commitment and in recognition and celebration of her substantial scholarly contributions, Dr. Mary Sanders Pollock receives the 2017 Hand Award for Research, Creative, and Professional Activity.

Presented by Provost Noel Painter on May 11, 2017 at the 131rd annual Undergraduate Commencement

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2016 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement

Post author By Shadia Munoz-Najar
Post date May 30, 2016

Congratulations to the following recipients of the 2016 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement.

Jason Evans, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Environmental Science and Studies
Hand Award for Research, Creative and Professional Activity

Dixon Sutherland, Ph.D., Professor of Religious Studies
Hand Award for Community Impact

Through the generosity of Homer and Dolly Hand of Belle Glade, Florida, the University has established honorary monetary awards to recognize outstanding faculty work. This year, we recognize the professional achievements of two outstanding members in two categories.
The Hand Award for Community Impact celebrates the achievements of faculty serving the needs of the community, both the Stetson community and the community beyond the campus. It, therefore, gives me great pleasure to present this award to one individual for distinctive faculty leadership and achievement.
DIXON SUTHERLAND has been an important member of the Stetson community since joining the faculty as Associate Professor of Religion and Director of the Institute for Christian Ethics in 1991. Throughout his tenure, he has worked faithfully on committees and task forces too numerous to mention. Dr. Sutherland is especially noted for his work with the Values Council, as advisor to the Edmunds Scholars Program, one of Stetson University’s most prestigious scholarships, and the Ethics Committee of the DeLand Hospital. He worked with former President Douglas Lee to establish the Howard Thurman Center at Stetson, an office dedicated to honoring the legacy of Dr. Howard Thurman, whose life and written works inspired Martin Luther King, Jr. and many leaders of the American Civil Rights Movement. According to one reference, “Dr. Sutherland has given generously of his time, energy, and abilities to make Stetson and the surrounding community a better place for the present and the future.” For his professional commitment and deep impact on the Stetson Community, Dr. Dixon Sutherland receives the 2016 Hand Award for Community Impact.
The Hand Award for Research, Creative, and Professional Activity celebrates faculty achievement, accomplishment, leadership, and contribution to the intellectual vibrancy and vitality of our campus. This Hand Award recognizes that excellence is to be found in innovative as well as traditional forms of scholarship that demonstrate substantive disciplinary or interdisciplinary knowledge. It, therefore, gives me great pleasure to present this award to one individual for distinctive achievement and leadership.
Jason Evans joined the faculty at Stetson University in 2014 as Assistant Professor of Environmental Science and Studies. His research focus is spatial analysis of flood risks in the southeast, sea level risk analysis, climate change impact, policy development, and stakeholder communication. Dr. Evans’ collaborations with colleagues at institutions across the country resulted in fruitful grantsmanship. Three of his four active grants are federally funded. His recent publication in Nature Climate Change, one of the top journals in science, resulted in landslide media interest including a recent interview on National Public Radio’s Science Friday. The media continues to seek his expertise on impact of climate change on sea level rise and our students have benefited greatly. The impact of his scientific and civic engagement, especially as an early career faculty, distinguishes him as a teacher-scholar who significantly contributes to the vibrancy and vitality of our Stetson community, the region, the nation, and the globe. For his professional commitment and in recognition and celebration of his distinctive achievement and leadership in research, Dr. Jason Evans receives the 2016 Hand Award for Research, Creative, and Professional Activity.

Presented by Provost Noel Painter on May 11, 2016 at the 130rd annual Undergraduate Commencement

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2015 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement

Post author By Shadia Munoz-Najar
Post date May 30, 2015

Congratulations to the following recipients of the 2015 Hand Awards for Distinguished Faculty Achievement.

Catherine Cameron, Ph.D., Professor of Legal Skills
Hand Award for Research, Creative and Professional Activity

Lance Long, Ph.D., Professor of Legal Skills
Hand Award for Research, Creative and Professional Activity

Kimberly Flint-Hamilton, Ph.D., Professor of Sociology
Hand Award for Community Impact

Stuart Michelson, Ph.D., Professor of Finance
Hand Award for Community Impact

Through the generosity of Homer and Dolly Hand of Belle Glade, Florida, the University has established honorary monetary awards to recognize outstanding faculty work. This year, we recognize the professional achievements of two outstanding members of our faculty for the Hand Award for Community Impact. The Hand Award for Community Impact celebrates the achievements of faculty serving the needs of the community, both the Stetson community and the community beyond the campus. It, therefore, gives me great pleasure to present this award to two individuals – one in the School of Business Administration, to be awarded this afternoon, and the other in the College of Arts and Sciences.
KIMBERLY FLINT-HAMILTONhas been a member of the Stetson community since 1999 when she joined the faculty of Sociology and Anthropology, a department she currently chairs. She has served on numerous University and College committees and task forces including the Faculty Senate, and Tenure and Promotion Policy Committee. Over the course of her tenure, Her deep commitment to Stetson has manifested itself in notable and extensive mentoring of faculty, particularly pre-tenure and visiting faculty across all disciplines and through myriad formal and informal venues. A quote from her nomination packet reads “Whereas many of us discuss and deliberate over our core values and of the practical application of social justice, we see in Kimberly one who actually lives social justice and promotes inclusive excellence among students, staff, and faculty”. For her professional commitment and deep impact on the Stetson Community, Kimberly Flint-Hamilton receives the 2015 Hand Award for Community Impact.
Through the generosity of Homer and Dolly Hand of Belle Glade, Florida, the University has established honorary monetary awards to recognize outstanding faculty work. This year, we recognize the professional achievements of two outstanding members of our faculty for the Hand Award for Community Impact. The Hand Award for Community Impact celebrates the achievements of faculty serving the needs of the community, both the Stetson community and the community beyond the campus. It, therefore, gives me great pleasure to present this award to two individuals – one in the College of Arts and Sciences, which was awarded this morning to Kimberly Flint-Hamilton. The other to a faculty member in the School of Business Administration.

STUART MICHELSONhas been a member of the Stetson community since 2001, when he became the Roland & Sarah George Professor of Finance. Over the course of his tenure, Stuart has served as director of the Executive MBA Program, dean of the School of Business Administration, and on over a dozen University and School of Business Administration Committees and Task forces. He is a model teacher-scholar and University citizen. At Stetson, everyone is a leader of the University’s future vibrancy – Stuart exemplifies this commitment, contributing significantly to advancing the mission and excellence of the University. For his professional commitment and deep impact on the Stetson Community, Stuart Michelson receives the 2015 Hand Award for Community Impact.

Presented by Provost Noel Painter on May 11, 2015 at the 129rd annual Undergraduate Commencement