Anthropology's Kathleen Saunders given CHSS' Excellence in Teaching Award for 2009-2010

Kathleen Saunders, an instructor in the Department of Anthropology at Western Washington University, has been named the recipient of the 2009-2010 Ronald Kleinknecht Excellence in Teaching Award for Non-Tenure-Track faculty from the College of Humanities and Social Sciences.

From the award announcement:

Students and colleagues praise Professor Saunders as an extremely effective and innovative teacher and as a caring and dedicated mentor/advisor. Her carefully planned class sessions coupled with the learning opportunities she facilitates outside the classroom have enhanced her students’ educational experience.

The Award Committee was very impressed by the breadth and depth of Professor Saunders’ teaching portfolio. The “hands-on” learning that characterizes the Community Action aspect of Professor Saunders’ Cultural Anthropology course is a good example of just how thoroughly she engages her students not only in the practice of anthropology, but in critical thinking and in ethics. Another hallmark of Professor Saunders’ teaching is her commitment to the teaching of writing skills; her “Instrumental Writing” has been featured in Western’s Innovative Teaching Showcase.

We are proud to count Professor Kathleen Saunders as a colleague and to add her to the list of excellent teachers named as Kleinknecht Award recipients.

This Excellence in Teaching Award is given each year to an instructor or visiting faculty member from the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. Depending on availability of funding, the award normally includes a $1,000 stipend.