Annual awards celebrate the best of the best among faculty and staff

Each year, Fort Lewis College recognizes the best of the best among faculty and staff with five awards. Below are the winners for 2015-16, along with a quote from their nomination letters.

Alice Admire Outstanding Teaching Award
Leslie Goldstein
Senior Lecturer, Freshman Math Program

“Two distinct avenues separate her from other professors. First and foremost, she genuinely loves teaching. It is apparent each and every day when she steps into a classroom that she loves her job, wants her students to achieve the goals they set for themselves, and supports them tirelessly on their own journeys. The second stems from the respect that she gives her students. Of course, one must earn respect, but on an individual basis she treats all students as equals, never speaks down to a student based on their individual abilities or test scores, and gives everyone the same opportunities regarding homework and extra-credit.”

Roger Peters Distinguished Professor Award
Susan Moss
Professor of Art

“In sum, Susan Moss has served the college over her entire career in so many substantive ways with lasting results that it should be clear that she strongly embodies the example provided by the extraordinary person for whom this award is dedicated, Dr. Roger Peters. In addition to her exemplary and extensive departmental and college-based service, she is a well liked, well connected, and dedicated community member, with contributions to others spanning a range that connects North America to Costa Rica. Were it not for Susan Moss’s accurate and dedicated research regarding changes to and directions being taken by higher education, Fort Lewis College would be in a much poorer position vis à vis the rest of our state institutions.”

New Faculty Teaching Award
Katie Mouzakis
Assistant Professor, Chemistry

“Dr. Katie Mouzakis is quite possibly the best professor I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. Not only is she enthusiastic and passionate about what she does, she is also a great teacher. Dr. Mouzakis has always worked with me to make sure that I completely understand each concept and technique we learn, and doesn’t hesitate to figure out another way to explain it to me if I don’t understand.”

Achievement Award
Ryan Haaland
Professor and Chair, Physics & Engineering

“Over the last five years he served as the department chair and oversaw a 100% increase in the number of students in the physics and engineering programs (about 300 majors in fall 2015). This enrollment success is due in part to his commitment to recruiting new students, which includes numerous hours each week (including weekends) meeting with prospective students and their families. In order to accommodate the increased student enrollment, he has also overseen a doubling of the faculty in these programs, requiring mentoring multiple new tenure-track faculty members.”

Outstanding Staff Award
Janis Koscielniak
Assistant Director, Admission

“Over the past two years, Fort Lewis has seen a 150% increase in applications and a 65% increase in admitted students. This additional volume was not easy to handle and it created additional work for Janis and her crew. There were long days. Weekend work. Piles of applications. Despite this, Janis maintained a calm, analytic approach to this issue and she worked deliberately and carefully toward working these files in a timely manner.”