The University of Scranton’s Provost’s Faculty Enhancement Awards are some of the University’s most coveted prizes, presented with the intention of encouraging, supporting, promoting and recognizing the efforts of faculty who strive for and achieve distinction and excellence in their work.
This year, nine Provost Awards were presented Thursday, May 14, at the McIlhenny Ballroom inside the DeNaples Center.
Award recipients included:
Honoring exceptional leadership in shared governance and academic planning, Andrew Venezia, Ph.D., associate professor of health and human performance, earned the Award for Academic Leadership and Institutional Stewardship. Dr. Venezia’s extensive service across more than 10 committees, including key chair roles, fosters collaboration, transparency and institutional strength while advancing faculty engagement and academic excellence throughout the University. As Faculty Senate Curriculum Committee chair alone, he convenes weekly meetings and works daily with various dean’s offices, the registrar, the provost and faculty from all three colleges.
Honoring a commitment to justice, human dignity and belonging, the Beloved Community Faculty Enhancement Award recognizes Kate Cummings, assistant professor and research and instruction librarian for the University’s Weinberg Memorial Library. Professor Cummings’ leadership in promoting intellectual freedom and equitable access to knowledge has earned widespread recognition. In 2025, she was elected as the Pennsylvania Library Association’s vice president and president-elect, a three-year commitment that will culminate in her leading the state’s library association.
Advancing care for creation and environmental justice, the Laudato Si’ Award honors Rich Larsen, professor of English and theatre. Professor Larsen has demonstrated decades of sustainable theatre practices, including innovative material reuse and eco-conscious design, long before sustainability became an institutional priority. His scenic design for a recent musical production used an estimated just $400 in new materials with the rest assembled entirely from stock and donated and reclaimed items, demonstrating how the arts can model creative stewardship of the natural world.
Recognizing excellence in outcomes-based education, the Award for Assessment and Educational Effectiveness honors the Department of Counseling and Human Services. Across their five degree programs, CHS faculty members commit themselves to helping their graduates become competent practitioners who are genuinely prepared to care for those they serve. The department assesses its students through transparent and rigorous practices and while using a continuous feedback model that drives student and programmatic success, building a culture of assessment that benefits the entire University and its people.
Honoring innovative and mission-centered collaboration, the Award for Mission-Driven Innovation and Partnerships recognizes the Department of Crime, Justice and Security. The department’s Center for the Analysis and Prevention of Crime engages students with community partners to address real-world challenges while advancing justice, public safety and transformative student learning. Partner organizations include the Scranton Police Department, the Lackawanna County District Attorney’s Office and the Office of Youth and Family Services, among others. The department also runs an annual cyber camp in the summer, providing training to high school students.
Celebrating outstanding scholarly achievement, the Award for Research and Scholarly Practice recognizes corecipients Spencer Galen, Ph.D., assistant professor of biology, and Marc Shapiro, Ph.D., professor and chair of theology and religious studies. Dr. Galen’s prolific research record includes 14 articles and a book chapter in an open-source textbook. He has also generated significant external funding and his work has been cited hundreds of times. Dr. Shapiro’s decades of leadership in Judaic Studies at Scranton has elevated the University’s international reputation and connections within worldwide Jewish communities. He is the author of nine books — with Nos. 10 and 11 in progress — and his most recent book about Rav Kook was a finalist for the prestigious Rabbi Sacks Book Prize.
Recognizing innovative teaching excellence, the Award for Transformative Teaching and Learning honors Ovidiu Cocieru, Ph.D., associate professor of management. Dr. Cocieru’s Classroom-as-Organization (CAO) approach is a research-based model in which student live organizational life rather than simulating it. For instance, his students in MGT 430 plan and execute Scranton SoccerFest every spring. Dr. Cocieru’s instruction strengthens student engagement and awards real authority to students. He has authored six peer-reviewed publications on CAO pedagogy, establishing him as a national authority on the subject.
Honoring sustained excellence across teaching, scholarship and service, the Magis Award recognizes Debra Fetherman, Ph.D., professor and chair of health and human performance. Dr. Fetherman’s leadership as Community-Based Learning’s (CBL) faculty coordinator has exemplified Ignatian values and prepared students to lead lives of purpose and service. She has led faculty workshops, supported colleagues in integrating CBL into their courses and secured grant funding. She also plays a central role in the Leahy College of Health Sciences’ TAPESTRY program, which introduces first-year students to Jesuit values to guide seniors to discern how those values will shape their professional lives.
Additionally, Ann “Nancy” Cummings, management and marketing faculty specialist, received the Faculty Senate Excellence in Graduate Teaching Award. The award recognizes a faculty member’s dedication to teaching graduate students in an encouraging and intellectually stimulating environment that promotes critical thinking and learning. Last year’s award winner, Wesam Alramadeen, assistant professor of operations and analytics, presented the award to Professor Cummings.
The University also honored a group of distinguished faculty members who are transitioning into scholarly pursuits, personal projects or retirement, among other things. The group includes Rev. Timothy Cadigan, S.J., Jones DeRitter, Ph.D., Michael Friedman, Ph.D., Jean Harris, Ph.D., Bonnie Markowski, MFA, and Terrence Sweeney, Ph.D., of the College of Arts and Sciences; Robert Spinelli, DBA, of the Leahy College of Health Sciences; and Daniel Mahoney, Ph.D., of the Kania School of Management.
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