Michelle Mazzucco, pictured with her class, receives Endowed Teaching Chair Award. MESA, Arizona – May 30, 2018 – Mesa Community College (MCC) recognizes faculty for excellence in teaching and learning with presentations of its first Endowed Teaching Awards.

The Endowed Teaching Chair Awards recognize faculty who provide quality instruction and demonstrate engagement in innovative and effective teaching practices. The Developmental Education Endowed Teaching Award provides programmatic support and professional growth funds for faculty teaching developmental education.

Julie Garner receives adjunct faculty Endowed Teaching Chair Award. “These awards allow MCC to recognize and reward faculty for providing world-class instruction, provide for professional growth opportunities above and beyond what the college makes available and make programmatic support available for faculty teaching developmental education,” said Jared Langkilde, MCC’s Executive Director of Development.

Michelle Mazzucco, MCC math faculty, is the inaugural recipient of the Endowed Teaching Chair Award for residential faculty for her innovative and effective teaching practices. Mazzucco receives $15,000 over three years.

The first adjunct faculty recipient of an Endowed Teaching Chair Award is Julie Garner of the Education Studies Department. Garner receives $1,500 over two years. In addition to her role as an adjunct faculty member, Garner also serves as an advisor for Education Studies.

A team from the MCC Math and Computer Science Department is the initial recipient of the Developmental Education Endowed Teaching Award. Collectively they will receive $3,920 to work on their programmatic support project Developmental Math Modules Shared Assessment Redesign. The team will use faculty feedback and insights to more accurately alig Developmental Education Endowed Teaching Award recipients. n assessment questions with course competencies. They will use three years of data as the basis for the realignment. The team includes Jennifer Caldwell, Shelley Ceinaturaga, Sam Crandall, Cindy Franklin, Roxanne Klassen, Michelle Mazzucco, Kim Norris and Melina Priewe. The project will benefit all math professors who teach Basic Arithmetic and Introductory Algebra and the thousands of students who take these courses each year.

The endowments were established with funding from the U.S. Department of Education Title III Foundations for Student Success grant and philanthropic support provided to MCC's Office of Development. The grant focused on improving student outcomes by providing faculty professional development, classroom and course redesign, and student success strategy instruction.

# # #

Media contact: Dawn Zimmer, 480-461-7892, dawn.zimmer@mesacc.edu

Mesa Community College is nationally recognized for service-learning, career and technical programs, civic engagement and innovative approaches to higher education. The college serves as a resource for career readiness, transfer education, workforce development and lifelong learning. Host to more than 30,000 students annually, MCC offers more than 150 degree and certificate programs at its two campuses and additional locations. MCC is an emerging Hispanic Serving Institution with a diverse student body that enriches the learning experience. Renowned faculty are dedicated to student success, providing the education and training that empowers MCC students to compete locally and nationally. MCC, located in the East Valley of Phoenix, Arizona, is one of 10 colleges comprising the Maricopa County Community College District. For additional information visit mesacc.edu.

Mesa Community College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) http://www.ncahlc.org.

The Maricopa County Community College District (MCCCD) is an EEO/AA institution and an equal opportunity employer of protected veterans and individuals with disabilities. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, or national origin. A lack of English language skills will not be a barrier to admission and participation in the career and technical education programs of the District.

The Maricopa County Community College District does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability or age in its programs or activities. For Title IX/504 concerns, call the following number to reach the appointed coordinator: (480) 731-8499. For additional information, as well as a listing of all coordinators within the Maricopa College system, visit http://www.maricopa.edu/non-discrimination.