SUNY Potsdam Professors Named to Distinguished Faculty Ranks

POTSDAM, NY (05/14/2015)(readMedia)-- The State University of New York Board of Trustees recently approved the appointments of two SUNY Potsdam professors to the Distinguished Faculty Ranks. All distinguished faculty in active service within SUNY are also members of the SUNY Distinguished Academy.

Crane School of Music faculty member Dr. Carleen Graham was named a SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor, while anthropology faculty member Dr. Karen Johnson-Weiner was named a SUNY Distinguished Service Professor.

"Carleen Graham and Karen Johnson-Weiner exemplify excellence in teaching, scholarship, leadership, service and community outreach. On behalf of the entire SUNY Potsdam community, I applaud them for their extraordinary achievements, upon this well-deserved recognition," SUNY Potsdam President Kristin G. Esterberg said.

SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor Dr. Carleen Graham

The Distinguished Teaching Professorship recognizes and honors mastery of teaching. For this prestigious tribute to be conferred, candidates must have demonstrated consistently superior mastery of teaching, outstanding service to students and commitment to their ongoing intellectual growth, scholarship and professional growth, and adherence to rigorous academic standards and requirements. Further, a faculty member must have attained and held the rank of full professor for five years, have completed at least three years of full-time teaching on the nominating campus, 10 years of full-time teaching in the System, and must have regularly carried a full-time teaching load as defined by the campus.

Dr. Graham is a professor of opera and director of the Crane Opera Ensemble at SUNY Potsdam's Crane School of Music, where she teaches advanced performance practice, musical theatre direction, opera literature and opera education for children. She has served as the director of the SUNY Potsdam Center for Student Research, as part of a $1.6 million U.S. Department of Education Strengthening Institutions Grant (2009 to 2013). She secured a patron gift of $100,000 to create the Opera Education Outreach Program for first-time students attending opera productions. She has collaborated with internationally known opera singer and alumna Stephanie Blythe '92 in founding the Fall Island Vocal Arts Seminar to promote enriched artistry in emerging professional singers and collaborative pianists. Graham also directed the winning productions for the first-ever Domenic J. Pellicciotti Opera Composition Prize this fall. Student evaluations consistently reveal that Graham is enthusiastic about teaching and committed to a student-centered learning process, providing a nurturing learning environment and creating an infectious atmosphere of creative decision-making. Colleagues regard her as a collaborative colleague, with significant influence on the direction of opera education in the future.

SUNY Distinguished Service Professor Dr. Karen Johnson-Weiner

The Distinguished Service Professorship honors and recognizes extraordinary service. Candidates must have demonstrated substantial distinguished service not only at the campus and the State University, but also at the community, regional and state levels. Further, many candidates for appointment have rendered influential service contributing at the national and international levels. Service must exceed the work generally considered to be a part of a candidate's basic professional work and should include service that exceeds that for which professors are normally compensated. It must also extend over multiple years and, very importantly, must involve the application of intellectual skills drawing from the candidate's scholarly and research interests to issues of public concern.

Dr. Johnson-Weiner is a professor of linguistic anthropology at SUNY Potsdam. She has international prominence as an author and consultant in Amish and Mennonite Studies, known for her ability to "give voice" to Amish concerns. For example, she has committed significant personal time and resources to assist the Amish in understanding legal documents, proceedings and proposals, and has assisted attorneys in understanding the cultural and religious practices of the Amish and how these impact the Amish point of view. She frequently provides expert commentary in interviews and national broadcasts. She is an author of the John Hopkins Press scholarly series on Anabaptist Studies, which began with her book, "Train Up a Child," and was a principal commentator on the PBS American Experience television series, titled "The Amish." Johnson-Weiner has published several textbooks that have become standard in the field, and she is a recipient of substantial research grants, including from the National Endowment for the Humanities (2005-2007) and the Spencer Foundation (2001). She was also recently recognized with a proclamation from New York State Senator Patricia Ritchie, recognizing her for the role she played in helping to prevent a public health crisis, after a horse on an Amish farm contracted rabies.

Since the program's inception in 1963, SUNY has appointed 1,023 faculty to the distinguished ranks as follows, including these most recent appointments: 352 Distinguished Professorships; 301 Distinguished Service Professorships; 365 Distinguished Teaching Professorships; and 5 Distinguished Librarian Professorships.

To learn more about SUNY Potsdam's dedicated faculty scholars, visit www.potsdam.edu.

Founded in 1816, and located on the outskirts of the beautiful Adirondack Park, The State University of New York at Potsdam is one of America's first 50 colleges. SUNY Potsdam currently enrolls approximately 4,300 undergraduate and graduate students. Home to the world-renowned Crane School of Music, SUNY Potsdam is known for its handcrafted education, challenging liberal arts and sciences core, excellence in teacher training and leadership in the performing and visual arts. Empowered by a culture of creativity, the campus community recently launched Take the Lead: The Campaign for Potsdam, which aims to raise $32 million by the College's bicentennial in 2016.

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Posted Thursday May 14, 2015 at 01:51 pm by SUNY Potsdam
Last Updated Wednesday May 27, 2015 at 03:59 pm