CONGRATULATIONS to Josh Queener for being a recipient of the Spring 2023 John S. Swenton Award for Outstanding Teaching!

Josh has served as a GTA for several different varieties of general chemistry over the past two years, including General Chemistry I (1210), General Chemistry II (1220), and General Chemistry for majors (1610). Josh’s outstanding teaching record resulted in his selection to serve as a GTA for a “pilot” section of Chemistry 1210 in which the course structure has been rearranged to an active learning format as part of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) “Driving Change” grant. In contrast to the “standard” general chemistry GTA assignment, TAs in this format are required to answer student questions and engage with students during every class.

The instructor for this course writes, “content knowledge is only one of many skills required to be a high-quality educator. Quickly assessing student understanding, providing formative feedback that gives the student a path forward toward the learning objective, and having good communication skills are all essential for Teaching Assistants in this class and Josh has been remarkable in all areas.”  Another nominator states: “Josh’s passion for teaching shines through when he works one-on-one with students…Josh is always willing to go the extra mile to ensure the success of his students and the team.”

On behalf of the department and our students, congratulations Josh! Thank you for all that you do, and keep up the great work!