Osceola Region Professors Awarded Endowed Chairs
ShareFriday, September 17, 2021
A Message from Melissa Pedone and Stanton Reed, Interim Presidents, Osceola, Lake Nona and Poinciana Campuses
Osceola Region professors were chosen as Valencia College Foundation Endowed Chairs for Learning Leadership Endowed Chair Distinguished Scholars for the 2021 – 2022 academic year.
- Steven Cunningham, professor, English for Academic Purposes, was awarded the Sue Luzadder Chair in Communications — $4,000
- Lisa Gray, professor, accounting on the Osceola Campus, was awarded the Dr. P. Phillips Foundation Chair in Free Enterprise — $7,000
- Mark Guillette, professor, sociology at the Osceola Campus, was awarded the Patricia Havill Whalen Chair in Social Sciences — $8,800
- Eunice Laurent, professor, biology at the Poinciana Campus, was awarded the Chesley G. Magruder Foundation Chair in Health & Life Science — $2,000.
- Jonathan Lair, professor, political science at the Lake Nona Campus, was awarded the Cliff & Daisy Whitehill Chair in Legal Studies — $4,600.
- Nelson M. Placa, professor, hospitality management on the Osceola Campus, was awarded the Central Florida Hotel and Lodging Association Chair in Hospitality Management — $4,700
To view a past article with additional Osceola Region Endowed Chair honorees, click here. To read about all 2021-2022 Endowed Chair recipients collegewide, as well as about their projects, click here.
The Endowed Chairs for Learning Leadership program has been established to recognize and promote academic excellence at Valencia College. The program honors outstanding members of the Valencia teaching faculty and provides resources needed for advancement of instruction at Valencia.
Learning Leadership Chairs have been established in two categories. Category I awards are awarded to faculty to fund a proposed learning experience that supports the mission, vision and values of Valencia College and has a connection to student learning. Category II awards provide funding for projects that enhance learning-centered activities and/or foster professional development departmentally, collegewide, within a discipline, or within the Central Florida community.