Faculty honored with 2026 Chapman Family, Johnston awards
The winning instructors exhibit excellence in undergraduate teaching through their creativity.
Both the Chapman Family Teaching Awards and Johnston Teaching Excellence Awards were created to honor the distinguished teaching of undergraduate students.
The Chapman Family Teaching Awards were established in 1993 during the Bicentennial Campaign via a gift from Max Carrol Chapman Jr. ’66 on behalf of the Chapman family.
The Johnston Teaching Excellence Awards were created in 1991 and are funded by the James M. Johnston Scholarship Program.
Chapman Teaching Awards
The winners receive a $30,000 stipend to use over a period of five years.
Seth Kotch, American studies department, College of Arts and Sciences
Who is the best teacher you’ve had and why?
Dr. Barbara Fields at Columbia University. She is everything I am not: studious, restrained, subtle. So subtle that it took me a while to grasp her sense of irony. She was an incredibly careful and effective communicator, with a quiet authority shored up by deep knowledge.
What’s something creative you’d done to engage your students?
I take my smaller classes for visits to Raleigh’s Central Prison. They tour the facility, meet prison staff, observe and are observed by inmates and learn about daily life behind bars. Students often report that visiting the inside of a prison is — we hope — a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Christian C. Lentz, geography and environment department, College of Arts and Sciences
Who’s the best teacher you’ve had and why?
My high school history teacher, Mr. Derek Williams, made the past come alive. He brought a keen sense of justice and equality to the study of the Constitution, labor movements, the civil rights struggle and other topics. A Carolina connection: He was a student of Dr. Jacquelyn Dowd Hall in Carolina’s history department and earned a master’s in with a thesis on the 1968 food workers’ strike.
What’s something creative you’ve done to engage your students?
I take my GEOG 232: Agriculture, Food, and Society class to the Carolina Community Garden to learn about their operation, practice farming and think about charity. The students love getting outside and doing manual labor. One year, about 20 students spent an hour digging a drainage ditch. They loved it — really!
University Teaching Awards
The University Teaching Awards annually recognize outstanding teaching and mentoring of undergraduate, graduate, and post-baccalaureate students. Faculty, staff, students, and alumni nominate deserving teachers and mentors.
Laura Ott, biology department, College of Arts and Sciences
Who is the best teacher you’ve had and why?
My doctoral adviser, Dr. Sam Jones. He taught me how to do good science and fostered my love of neutrophils. More importantly, he recognized my passion for teaching. Sam saw my potential before I did, and his mentorship and encouragement gave me the skills and confidence to pursue a teaching-focused career.
What’s something creative you’ve done to engage your students?
I perform the “Antibody Dance,” a way to help students learn the basics of antibody structure and function. It’s set to the tune of the “Hokey Pokey.” Students are skeptical at first but get into it. And it works! During exams I can tell when a student is tackling a related question because they’re quietly doing the dance.
Michael Vazquez, philosophy department, College of Arts and Sciences
Who is the best teacher you’ve had and why?
I think of Scott Weinstein at the University of Pennsylvania. He’s taught formal logic to generations of students with infectious enthusiasm. He gets people excited to learn by putting the joy of thinking on clear display and showing how much better it is when done in community with others.
What’s something creative you’ve done to engage your students?
Some of my courses involve going out into the community to do philosophy. Whether we’re working with middle schoolers or older adults, I’ve found that getting beyond the university bubble brings out the best in our thinking. It’s highly motivating for students to share what they’ve learned and just as rewarding to learn from the community in turn.
Johnston Teaching Excellence Awards
The two recipients receive $5,000 and a framed citation.
Terence Oliver, Hussman School of Journalism and Media
Who is the best teacher you’ve had and why?
Ann Frihauf in high school. She noticed a homemade portfolio I constructed from cardboard and duct tape and quietly replaced it with a real one she had purchased. I was stunned by her kindness. That small moment taught me a lifelong lesson: Great teachers don’t just teach content — they truly see their students.
What’s something creative you’ve done to engage your students?
I introduce motion graphics as a “superpower” by telling students that Superman was created in my childhood neighborhood, which it was. Then I dramatically rip open my shirt to reveal a Superman costume underneath. The surprise captures their attention, launches a lecture on visual storytelling and proves how powerful visuals make stories unforgettable.
Melanie Studer, health policy and management department, Gillings School of Global Public Health
Who is the best teacher you’ve had and why?
My high school biology teacher, Mr. Hetherington. He challenged me while offering support, encouraged my curiosity and created a classroom where students genuinely wanted to be. He cared about me as a student and person, building my confidence and celebrating my successes — with a dry wit that made learning fun.
What’s something creative you’ve done to engage your students?
In my U.S. health system courses, I designed a yearlong team project where students investigate a real-world problem and analyze potential solutions. This immersive experience pushes them to think deeply and critically while building skills in teamwork, project management, research and communication, making learning both rigorous and highly relevant.
