Faculty whose teaching, research, and service shaped our community this year.
by Fabiola M. Martinez Del Valle

 

The Department of English is proud to recognize faculty members who received major campus awards and department teaching recognitions in Spring 2026. Their achievements in teaching, leadership, mentoring, and community engagement reflect the depth of expertise and commitment that define our department and its contributions to the university.

 

Campus Wide Awards

Van Hise Outreach Teaching Award

Kevin Mullen
Affiliate Faculty Member, Director of Adult Education for the Odyssey Project

Kevin Mullen teaches adult learners whose educational paths have been shaped by incarceration, poverty, trauma, and systemic barriers. The Van Hise Outreach Teaching Award honors faculty whose teaching reflects the Wisconsin Idea by extending the university’s reach to communities across the state. Mullen’s work through the UW Odyssey Project and Odyssey Beyond Bars embodies that mission. His classrooms invite students to see their lived experiences as sources of insight and authority, helping them build confidence in their writing and in their futures. Student Char Braxton describes him as “a lifeline and a mentor,” a teacher whose work embodies empathy and resilience. Mullen’s outreach driven approach continues to open pathways into higher education for learners who have long been told that college is not for them.

Chancellor’s Distinguished Teaching Award

Raquel Kennon
Associate Professor, Literary Studies

Raquel Kennon is an associate professor of English whose work focuses on nineteenth through twenty first century African American literature, particularly African diaspora literatures and cultures. The Chancellor’s Distinguished Teaching Award recognizes faculty whose teaching demonstrates exceptional skill, innovation, and impact. Kennon describes her classroom as a laboratory, a space for testing ideas, discovering connections, and using literature to understand the world. She is known for fostering what she calls courageous conversations, guiding students through collaborative inquiry and carefully structured assignments that encourage intellectual risk taking. She also makes the university’s hidden curriculum visible, offering students clear frameworks and pathways for success. Professor Sarah Ensor notes that Kennon is “the best of us,” a teacher whose care, rigor, and generosity shape students’ academic and personal growth.

Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Leadership at the School, College, or Campus Level

Joe Nosek
Teaching Professor; Director of the English as a Second Language Program, English as a Second Language

Joe Nosek’s leadership of the English as a Second Language Program has strengthened support for multilingual students across UW Madison. The Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Leadership at the School, College, or Campus Level recognizes academic staff who demonstrate outstanding leadership within their units and across the university. Nosek oversees curriculum development, instructor supervision, testing, budgeting, and cross campus collaboration, ensuring that English language learners receive consistent and high quality academic support. Under his direction, the TESOL Certificate has been revitalized and now enrolls more students than it has in nearly a decade. He also builds community engaged initiatives, including the Afghan English Language Tutoring Project. Department Chair Christa J. Olson notes that his “exceptional leadership starts from student and community need,” creating connections that serve both campus and the wider world.

Award for Mentoring Undergraduates in Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activities

Jacee Cho
Vilas Associate Professor; Director of the Second Language Acquisition Lab, English Language and Linguistics 

Jacee Cho studies multilingual minds and invites undergraduates into that research from the beginning. The Award for Mentoring Undergraduates in Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activities recognizes faculty who foster intellectual, personal, and professional growth through high impact research experiences. Cho has built an experimental learning environment that brings together undergraduates, graduate students, and faculty as co learners. Through reading groups, training workshops, and scaffolded research opportunities, she prepares students with little or no linguistics background to engage with confidence. Many go on to present at major conferences. One student shared that she “changed my career and academic trajectory,” a reflection of the transformative mentorship that defines Cho’s work.

L&S Graduate Advising Award

Morris Young
Charles Q. Anderson Professor of English, Composition and Rhetoric

For nearly two decades, Morris Young has shaped graduate and undergraduate education at UW Madison through mentorship defined by care, rigor, and long term impact. The L&S Graduate Advising Award recognizes advisors whose work strengthens student success and contributes meaningfully to the academic mission of the College of Letters and Science. Young has mentored hundreds of graduate instructors, advised dozens of doctoral students to completion, and served on more than fifty dissertation committees. Former student Dr. Annika Konrad, now Associate Director of the English Department Writing Program at the University of Michigan, notes that he “cares deeply about graduate students as developing scholars and human beings,” offering guidance that supports both academic and personal growth. Young describes effective advising as work grounded in mutual respect, a philosophy that has helped cultivate a culture of thoughtful and inclusive mentorship across the department.

Department Teaching Recognitions

These recognitions were presented by Amanda Shubert, Educational Innovation Coordinator, whose work with instructors through Pedagogy Brown Bags, Academic Staff Community Lunches, and individual consultations provides a unique window into innovative teaching across the department.

Recognition for Innovation in Course Design

Sara Kelm
Assistant Teaching Professor; Director of English 100, Composition and Rhetoric

Sara Kelm teaches ENGL 400, an advanced composition course that guides students in reading and writing creative nonfiction. The Recognition for Innovation in Course Design honors instructors who create structures that support deep engagement, collaboration, and community based writing. Professor Amanda Shubert notes that Kelm’s course, “The Work of Creative Nonfiction,” invites students to produce and revise multimedia narrative work, including personal essays, audio essays, and ethnographic writing. Her course design cultivates a trusting and generous writing community where students learn to honor vulnerability and support one another. Shubert adds that Kelm’s individualized support for students is exceptional, and student feedback is so enthusiastic it is often written in all caps.

Recognition for Innovation in Course Design

Lindsay Jacoby
Lecturer; Associate Director of English 100, Composition and Rhetoric

Lindsay Jacoby is recognized for innovative course design in ENGL 400. This award honors instructors who create structures that allow students to have authentic and inspiring encounters with the essay genre and with their own creative processes. Professor Amanda Shubert highlights Jacoby’s humility and collaborative spirit, noting that Jacoby credits her students for the success of the course. Jacoby describes her design as “50 percent the structure I create and the other 50 percent the intellectual drive and generosity students bring to the table.” Shubert emphasizes that capturing that second half, the lightning in a bottle that is student co-creation, requires sophisticated planning and classroom practice, which Jacoby achieves with clarity and care.

Recognition for Innovation in Assessment

Kate Merz
Lecturer, English

Kate Merz is recognized for innovative assessment practices in ENGL 144: Women’s Writing. The Recognition for Innovation in Assessment honors instructors who design assignments that deepen learning and support diverse forms of expression. Professor Amanda Shubert explains that Merz developed an open-ended creative project inspired by a fall Pedagogy Brown Bag conversation about creative assignments in large lectures. Students submit a proposal, documentation of their creative process, an Artist’s Statement, and the final product. The assignment has been a resounding success. One third of the class chose this option, producing poetry collections, short stories, podcasts, interviews, short films, dioramas, photo essays, collages, and other creative work. Shubert also recognizes TA Amy Ruckman for co-designing the Artist’s Statement and providing detailed feedback on student proposals.