University Teaching Awards honor 25 standout educators
Selected from 588 nominations, the winners are skilled instructors and “true champions of the student.”
Twenty-five Carolina faculty members and graduate teaching assistants have been recognized for their excellence with the 2025 University Teaching Awards.
Chancellor Lee H. Roberts and Provost J. Christopher Clemens announced the winners Jan. 21, writing in a campus message that “each of these individuals demonstrates the depth and scope of Carolina’s commitment to teaching and mentoring.”
“This group of vibrant teachers and mentors represents the diversity of people and disciplines on our campus,” they wrote. “Not every outstanding teacher receives an award, but each award winner this year undoubtedly represents the best of what Carolina has to offer.”
The annual awards provide a chance to recognize outstanding teaching and mentoring of undergraduate, graduate and post-baccalaureate students. Faculty, staff, students and alumni nominate deserving teachers and mentors.
The University Teaching Awards Committee reviews nominations each fall and gathers additional information before recommending a slate of winners to the chancellor. This year, the committee evaluated 588 nominations before selecting the following winners in nine categories.
Mentor Award for Lifetime Achievement
- Sudhanshu (Ashu) Handa, public policy department, College of Arts and Sciences
Distinguished Teaching Award for Post-Baccalaureate Instruction
- Cheryl Bolick, School of Education
- Todd Cherner, School of Education
- Dr. John Min, School of Medicine
- Raúl Necochea, School of Medicine
Chapman Family Teaching Awards
- Joshua Beaver, chemistry department, College of Arts and Sciences
- Lini Ge Polin, Asian and Middle Eastern studies department, College of Arts and Sciences
- Shimul Melwani, Kenan-Flagler Business School
- Dana Riger, School of Education
Tanner Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching
- Vicki Chanon, psychology and neuroscience department, College of Arts and Sciences
- Nita Eskew, chemistry department, College of Arts and Sciences
- Corey Johnson, biology department, College of Arts and Sciences
- Lucy Martin, political science department, College of Arts and Sciences
- Kym Weed-Buzinski, English and comparative literature department, College of Arts and Sciences
William C. Friday Award for Excellence in Teaching
- Kenneth Donnelly, biomedical engineering department
Carlyle Sitterson Award for Teaching First-Year Students
- Luc Bovens, philosophy department, College of Arts and Sciences
- Townsend Middleton, anthropology department, College of Arts and Sciences
Johnston Teaching Excellence Award
- Andrea Hussong, psychology and neuroscience department, College of Arts and Sciences
- Shahar Kovalsky, mathematics department, College of Arts and Sciences
Tanner Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching by Graduate Teaching Assistants
- David Stilwell, physics department, College of Arts and Sciences
- Joseph Tanner Bourne, Romance studies department, College of Arts and Sciences
- Dianne Mann, Gillings School of Global Public Health
- Clare Byers, history department, College of Arts and Sciences
- Andrew Lyons, mathematics department, College of Arts and Sciences
More information about the winners can be found on the University Teaching Awards page on the provost website. Look for short Q&As with the honorees in The Well later this semester.
