Shauna McKnight | News Co-Editor

Dr. Shawn Stone
How did you feel when you found out you were nominated?
I was happy. Teaching is hard, and it’s nice to be noticed. Since being nominated I have learned a lot about my teaching. It is gratifying to find that I have made a difference in students’ lives.

Do you have any ideas on what you would do with your sabbatical?
I teach a class called the Science of World War II, and in it are geographical locations that I would like to actually see firsthand. I would like to go to the Trinity site where the first nuclear bomb was exploded, and I want to go to Hiroshima; I would like to go to England and see Farm Hall, where they took the German scientists after the war was over and recorded them and their reactions to the bombing of Hiroshima. They actually tried to build a nuclear reactor in Europe, and I would like to go and see that site.

What is your favorite thing about being a professor at BVU?
I still get to learn, and the students keep me young; they ask great questions, and I like being in that environment. Learning is fun, and I’m in the best job in the world (in my opinion). It’s like I’ve never left school; I get to be a student.

Dr. Scott Anderson
How did you feel when you found out you were nominated?
It was awesome. I’ve been on the Wythe committee for several years, and I know the caliber of people who get nominated. To be grouped with them is a pretty cool thing.

Do you have any ideas of what you would do with your sabbatical?
Along with being a marketing professor, I am also the director of internships for the School of Business. In that position, I meet with internship employers on a weekly basis to “grease the skids” for our students. I would use my sabbatical to complete one or more internships and work more closely with the companies. I would like to work on their marketing programs and assist them in building quality internship programs for our students.

What’s your favorite part about being a professor at BVU?
I’ve been a professor for sixteen years now, and I guess the best part is just working with students and helping them follow their dreams. I have a unique position in the university, as I’m in the classroom half the time, and half the time I’m working with businesses. That dual role allows me to bring the two perspectives together in the classroom. I get to help students find meaningful career opportunities while I help employers find quality students to join their businesses. I really like working with our students; they’re energy and excitement can be infectious, and it helps me to stay young.

Dr. Swasti Bhattachayyra
How did you feel when you were nominated for the award?
It is an honor. Most of the professors are at BV because they like to teach and that’s an important aspect of their job. To be recognized is an honor.

Do you have any idea what you would do with a sabbatical if you won the award?
Yes I do! I have a book that’s been in my head since 2006. I’ve been going to India and interviewing different people. I now have three generations’ worth of interviews: people that worked with Ghandi and Vinoba through the middle generation and then the kids of those people. I have all these interviews that need transcribed, and I need to start writing.

What’s your favorite thing about teaching at BV?
Teaching is supported and anything I’ve wanted to do so far I’ve been able to do and have been supported in doing. My favorite thing is the interdisciplinary opportunities. For instance, last year I taught an Images of Eve class and I had an art assignment. In the past this art assignment didn’t go very well. I realized it’s because I don’t know that much about art so I went to Mary Mello-Nee, and said ‘hey would you help me with this?’ What we ended up doing was having a joint project in the class where her art students teamed up with my students. The projects were exponentially better. These types of possibilities aren’t always possible in other places and I’ve really appreciated the collaboratives.

Professor Jason Shepherd
How did you feel when you found out you were nominated?
I was both proud and humbled. I was proud to be recognized by students and my peers, and I was humbled to have my name listed next to the other finalists. The other finalists do wonderful things in terms of developing our students, pushing them, and helping them achieve their goals. It’s an honor just being nominated along with them.

Do you have any ideas on what you would do with your sabbatical?
I have several ideas, though I’m not sure which is most likely to take hold. One idea would be to reengage my colleagues in industry and get involved with the development of a cutting-edge software product. Such a sabbatical could benefit my own personal professional development, and hopefully I could get students involved as well so that they can see first-hand what such an environment is like. Another idea is to travel and teach elsewhere to broaden my teaching perspective and pedagogy. Yet another idea would be to commune with researchers in computer security or robotics. This again could be a good opportunity to involve students.

What’s your favorite part about being a professor at BVU?
I love the BVU community and the way we support faculty development. I like working in a place where faculty talk to each other about teaching on a regular basis. I really enjoy helping s