After faculty and students submitted nominations, four faculty members received Excellence Awards in recognition of distinguished performance in their respective areas. Recipients were each given a plaque and monetary award.<\/p>\n
Teaching excellence awards, named for two of SAU\u2019s most exceptional teachers, were granted.<\/p>\n
The Robert B. Walz Teaching Excellence Award was presented to Kristen Cribb, instructor of marketing, for her joyful approach to teaching students job-ready skills.<\/p>\n
Dedicated to literacy education using innovative instructional practices, Jenny Louden, associate professor of education, received the Calvin U. Wetzig Teaching Excellence Award.<\/p>\n
Bouchaib Zazoum, associate professor of engineering-physics, earned the Excellence in Research Award for his meaningful, cutting-edge, student-inclusive research in materials science.<\/p>\n
JP Wilson, assistant professor of music and director of bands, was honored with the Auburn Smith Excellence in Service Award as a recruiter, mentor, volunteer, and quality educator.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/files\/2026\/06\/B6_3AB_5881567_1440157101_3.jpg\")
Honor professor presented to Dr. Neelie Dobbins by Dr. Bruno Hicks<\/p><\/div>\n
Honor Professor<\/strong><\/p>\n Honor Professor, the University\u2019s most prestigious faculty distinction, was awarded to Neelie Dobbins, professor of education. Dobbins was selected to receive the award from a pool of candidates nominated by faculty and students. Recognition was afforded for not only her professional scholarship recognized nationwide, but her leadership and altruism.<\/p>\n Spirit Awards<\/strong><\/p>\n Spirit Awards were presented to one faculty member from each college in recognition of those who exemplify SAU’s values and commitment to the university community.<\/p>\n The Mulerider Spirit Awards was presented to: Ronnie Watson, assistant professor of management, Rankin College of Business; Megan Quebedeaux, assistant professor of education, College of Education and Human Performance; John Schneiderwind, associate professor of history, Dempsey College of Liberal and Performing Arts; Tara Almand, associate professor of nursing, College of Science and Engineering; and Jessica Samples, associate professor of education, School of Graduate Studies.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong>Mary Armwood Faculty Award<\/strong><\/p>\n Amber Overholser, associate professor and MPA program director, received the Mary Armwood Faculty Award, recognition for an outstanding level of professionalism in the area of service and valuing people.<\/p>\n \u201cSAU recognizes the quality of our university\u2019s education demonstrated in the work of these exemplary faculty members,\u201d said Dr. Robin Sronce, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs.<\/p>\n Southern Arkansas University congratulates all award recipients for their achievements and thanks them for their continued dedication to students and the university.<\/p>\n About SAU:<\/strong> At the annual Faculty Awards Presentation, Southern Arkansas University honored members of its faculty for outstanding contributions in teaching, research, service, and institutional spirit. \u00a0Excellence Awards After faculty and students submitted nominations, four faculty members received Excellence Awards in recognition of distinguished performance in their respective areas. Recipients were each given a plaque and monetary… Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":12018,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[271,140,181,207,308,7753],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12017","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-academics","category-college-of-business","category-education","category-college-of-liberal-performing-arts","category-college-of-science-and-technology","category-homepage","entry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12017","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12017"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12017\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12024,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12017\/revisions\/12024"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12018"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12017"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12017"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12017"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nSouthern Arkansas University provides students with the complete college experience in a caring environment of service, innovation, and community. With more than 100 degrees across four distinct colleges and the School of Graduate Studies, SAU initiates new degree programs to meet the needs of today’s career and professional trends. To learn more about SAU, visit www.saumag.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"