The National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD) recognizes individuals at NISOD institutions on an annual basis, honoring higher education's best faculty and staff who have dedicated their careers to excellence in the classroom and innovation outside of the classroom. This year, Estrella Mountain's nominated faculty members were Dr. Deborah Raffin, education faculty; Dr. Rachel Smith, biology faculty; and Bronwen Steele, biology faculty. Each nominated faculty member has made significant contributions to the college including development of teaching programs and courses; serving as mentors to students; active participation in campus activities, committees and clubs; and supporting their peers.
On May 25, 2008, these three faculty members celebrated their success with more than 1,300 other faculty, staff and administrators at the 2008 NISOD Conference held at the University of Texas, Austin.The conference consisted of a variety of workshops, seminars, and sessions relating to issues in higher education and best practice discussions. Dr. Raffin took advantage of a workshop titled, "Building Bridges to Learning Centered Faculty Leadership," which she said related to the college's mission to become a learning college. She chose several other sessions that focused on topics that would benefit her future experiences in the classroom and with her students. "The ideas from these sessions are important and relevant in my classroom as well as in the content of the courses I teach," she said. "It was inspiring to be among so many dedicated colleagues."
Dr. Smith was excited to be chosen as one of the nominated faculty members, "I am happy and honored that a college, whose culture centers on student learning and promoting student success, would recognize my efforts in and outside of the classroom and see it as being valuable to our students," she said.Steele had similar sentiments saying, "I feel honored to be nominated for the award since it is my colleagues that nominated me. I believe they appreciate that I support them and all of our efforts to provide the best instruction possible at Estrella Mountain."The conference culminated with the NISOD Excellence Awards Celebration where Estrella Mountain's faculty members were recognized in front of a national audience. Congratulations faculty members!