April 20, 2017—Teams led by Craig Regester and Adam Simon of LSA were recently awarded the University of Michigan Provost's Teaching Innovation Prize for unique teaching approaches. Projects were selected from 65 nominations from 13 schools and colleges, and winners will receive $5,000 and display their projects at a poster session on May 1.

“Our outstanding faculty members break new ground in so many areas of their scholarship and research, and these awards make clear that a spirit of innovation is just as evident in their teaching,” said LSA Dean Andrew D. Martin. “I offer my congratulations and thanks for these creative approaches to student learning.”

Regester, an adjunct lecturer in the Residential College and associate director of Semester in Detroit, collaborated with Lolita Hernandez, a lecturer in the Residential College, and Stephen Ward, the director of Semester in Detroit and an associate professor of Afroamerican and African studies and in the Residential College, to create "Detroiters Speak," which facilitates dialogues between members of the Detroit and Ann Arbor communities. Now in its fifth semester, the series has transformed into a one-credit mini course for students from U-M, Wayne State University, and the surrounding community.

The second winning team, headed by Adam Simon with IT specialist Peter Knoop, transformed the EARTH 380 course from lecture-based teaching to a series of projects and investigations, asking students to tackle a particular energy-related concept each week, investigate solutions, and submit their results for discussion during weekly sections.

The annual award is sponsored by the Office of the Provost, the Center for Research on Learning and Teaching, and the University Library. 

Click here to view the full article at the University Record.