Adrian College Students Honor Professor posted 9/8/10
Professor Massey receives Academic Service’s EXCELlent professor of the year award

ADRIAN, Mich. - Adrian College is honored to present Dr. Carissa Massey with the 2010 Academic Service’s EXCELlent Professor of the Year award. The award was given to Massey at the Academic Services Open House on Wednesday, Sept. 1.

Adrian College student Michael Gniewek as well academic services support staff and vice president and dean of academic affairs Dr. Agnes Caldwell presented Massey with the award. Her name has also been added to a plaque hanging in Academic Services.

Gniewek nominated Massey for the award.

“Professor Massey is the very best teacher to have in the morning at eight A.M.!” said Gniewek. “Instead of being dry and dull, she has enough energy to inspire the entire class to get excited about Art History. It was not lightly that I voted for Professor Massey as the instructor but because she has some amazing qualities: she is energetic, intelligent, dedicated, caring and just try to describe without the words brilliant or gorgeous. She cares about her subject, her students, her teaching quality and basically her control of most variables in her classroom. She rightly deserves the award.”

Gniewek is a senior majoring in art. He credits Dr. Massey for his positive experiences in and out of the classroom.

“Her energy inspires us to achieve,” he said. “Through her urging, she convinced me that I needed to continue my education and go to grad school. She’s my academic advisor but we have a great friendship as well. Without her college would be a horrible experience for me.”

The EXCELlent Professor of the Year award is student-generated and was established in 1995. Last spring, the 160 students who participate in the Excel program were asked to vote based on four elements of criteria. Those elements include respect for individual student’s needs; challenge in course work; comprehensive yet fair evaluation; and openness in discussions.

The award is sponsored by the EXCEL program at the College. It is a five-year grant program funded 75% by the United States Department of Education ($1.355 million) and 25% by Adrian College. EXCEL supports 160 students yearly with scholarships and services aimed at persistence, retention, and graduation. First-generation college students, low-income and/or students with disabilities may qualify for the EXCEL program.

Dr. Massey specializes in class, gender, sexuality in contemporary visual culture and Appalachian studies. She received her PhD in art history, feminist theory and aesthetics from the School of Interdisciplinary Arts, Ohio University.

Massey has said that she teaches because she loves to learn.

“I believe that teaching holds social and civic value; it is a way to give back to the community while passing forward important historical knowledge and shaping the direction of the discipline of art history,” she said.

Dr. Carissa Massey lives in Adrian with her husband Jason Hartz.