Alpha Chi Omicron Teaching Award Winners Announced
This year in May, Alpha Chi Omicron (AXO), Fordham’s chapter of Sigma Tau Delta, the international English honor society, announced the winners of the first ever Alpha Chi Omicron Award for Outstanding Teaching. Given in recognition of outstanding teaching that combats racism and promotes social justice, these awards are based on student nominations collected and reviewed by members of Alpha Chi Omicron (AXO), Fordham’s chapter of Sigma Tau Delta, the international honor society for students of English literature. Funding for these awards was generously provided by the Office of Diversity and Equity, the Writing Program, and the Department of English.
Outstanding Teaching in Composition
Maya Castellanos
Jessica D’Onofrio
Students praised Professor Castellanos for her open discussions on racial issues particularly within the prison system, and her open and inviting approach to teaching. In the words of the students, “Professor Castellanos has raised awareness on so many social injustices that go on around us. Everybody can speak their mind without feeling as if they’re going to get punished or even discredited.”
Students also praised Professor D’Onofrio for her prioritization of her student’s mental health and incorporation of current events. As the students put it, “It would be incredibly difficult not to feel welcome and comfortable in Professor D’Onofrio's class! She is a kind and genuine person, and the way she speaks to her students fosters a feeling of equality and comfort.”
Honorable mentions for teaching in Composition
Caitlin Cawley
Frederic Colier
Lennox Debra
John Gaffney
Antiwa Ghosh
John Miele
Tara Menon
Danielle Sottosanti
Outstanding Teaching in Texts and Contexts
Professor James Kim
Professor Srigowri Kumar
Students appreciated how Professor Kim encouraged them to grow as writers and infused every class with engaging, vulnerable conversations about issues our country is currently facing. In the words of one student, “I was pushed as both a student and a person by the course, and as a result, my love for the subject exponentially grew.”
Professor Kumar was praised for drawing her students’ attention to the revolutionary power of language through close reading and problematizing the idea of the personal as something unaffected by the political. As one student put it, “I have such a deeper appreciation for language that it actually gives me some hope for what I might contribute in the future.”
Honorable mentions for teaching in Texts and Contexts
Stephen Romagnoli
John Gaffney
Lowery McClendon
Cornelius Collins
Alexander Mindt
Corey McEleney
Jordan Stein
Peter Krause
Outstanding Teaching in Upper-Division Courses
Professor Daniel Contreras
Professor Keri Walsh
Students praised Professor Contreras for the intersectionality of his syllabi and his passionate empathy as a professor. In the words of the students, “Professor Contreras takes a radical approach to assignments and allows students to explore and express how literature impacts their lives.”
Students also praised Professor Walsh for her infectious energy and enthusiasm regarding course texts and themes. One student wrote, “Professor Walsh’s class has given me hope for the future of English academia. She has shown me that literature and academia grapple with antiracism and social justice, the very issues from which I thought English was divorced.”
Honorable mentions for teaching in upper-division courses
Stephen Sohn
Danielle Sottosanti
Amina Tajbhai
In addition to receiving a check for $250, each prize winner will be presented with a commemorative plaque, and each honorable mention will be presented with a certificate of recognition at the Alpha Chi Omicron induction ceremony for new members.