Five Honored with 2022 SU Alumni Association Faculty Appreciation Awards

SALISBURY, MD---This year’s Salisbury University Alumni Association Faculty Appreciation Award winners are “instrumental,” “left a lasting impression,” “taught with enthusiasm” and served as “a light to all,” according to their former students.

The association honored five with the accolade as part of SU’s annual Fall Commencement celebration. They include Drs. Deborah Mathews (Social Work) in the College of Health and Human Services, Larence Becker (Psychology) in the Charles R. and Martha N. Fulton School of Liberal Arts, Jennifer Bergner (Mathematical Sciences) in the Richard A. Henson School of Science and Technology, Thomas Calo (Management) in the Franklin P. Perdue School of Business, and Chin-Hsiu Chen (Early and Elementary Education) in the Samuel W. and Marilyn C. Seidel School of Education.

“These faculty have made a lasting impression on students, have provided dynamic classroom instruction, exhibit attributes graduates can take with them into their careers, and have made a difference in the lives of their students,” said Dr. Lili Leonard, Alumni Association president.

In their nominations, alumni frequently gave eloquent and heartfelt praise to this year’s recipients, whom many said helped shape their experiences at SU.

“Dr. Mathews was instrumental in launching the M.S.W. program at SU. As a graduate of the very first M.S.W. class, I can’t begin to tell you how important she was to my years as a graduate student,” said one alumnus. “Dr. Mathews was always there to give us whatever we needed and help us become the best we could be.”

“Dr. Becker is the reason I work in psychology and neuroscience today,” said his nominator. “In his research methods class, we had a project to develop 10 steps to achieve our future goals in the field of psychology. Through this project, I realized I wanted to pursue a Ph.D. and subsequently applied to be a part of the SU Neuroscience Lab and the Cognitive Aging Lab.”

“Dr. Bergner went above and beyond in her service to students and their futures. She did whatever possible to help us succeed,” said a former student. “Dr. Bergner is also one of the few math professors who has the special skill of breaking concepts down to the most basic levels, making learning and retaining information that much more possible for students.”

“Dr. Calo invested in his students who truly wanted to learn and become better,” said an alumnus. “He left a lasting impression on me through his professionalism, kindness and dedication to teaching.”

“Dr. Chen was, by far, the best professor I had during my time at Salisbury,” said a former student. “She was understanding and caring, and taught with enthusiasm. She made class fun, and the projects she assigned were hard, but achievable.”

Learn more about opportunities to Make Tomorrow Yours at the SU website.