Dr. Beth Roberts Receives Vulcan Materials Company Award for Teaching Excellence and Leadership

ATLANTA, GA (07/06/2012)(readMedia)-- Dr. Beth Roberts was honored at Oglethorpe University's commencement ceremony in May 2012 with the Vulcan Materials Company Award for Teaching Excellence and Leadership. Before retiring in May, Dr. Roberts was the Vera A. Milner Professor of Education and Director of the Master of Arts in Teaching - Early Childhood Education Program at Oglethorpe.

The award is sponsored by the Vulcan Materials Company and presented annually to a member of the faculty who demonstrates a high level of commitment to teaching, student success, and campus life. The award was presented by last year's winner, Dr. Karen Schmeichel, assistant professor of biology. During the presentation she commented that Dr. Roberts "works proactively, with the perfect combination of daring and grace, to define problems with the clearest of insight and to author the most elegant solutions."

Dr. Roberts received her B.A., M.A.T. and Ph.D. from Emory University. She joined Oglethorpe's faculty in 2000, when she pioneered the university's only graduate degree program, the Master of Arts in Teaching. She served as the director of the program for the past eleven years, and retired in May 2012.

Founded in 1835, Oglethorpe University is a leading liberal arts and sciences university which enrolls 1,100 students representing 34 states and 28 countries. Oglethorpe is named among U.S. News & World Report's Best Liberal Arts Colleges, Forbes' America's Best Colleges, and Princeton Review's named Oglethorpe a Best Southeastern College in its 2012 edition of The Best 376 Colleges. Oglethorpe is a member of the Annapolis Group, an organization of America's most selective liberal arts institutions. For seven consecutive years, Oglethorpe has been named to the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for commitment to and achievement in community service. Oglethorpe is home to the Oglethorpe University Museum of Art and to Georgia Shakespeare, the professional theatre-in-residence. OU currently competes in the NCAA Division III Southern Athletic Association. Website: www.oglethorpe.edu