Two Kennesaw State faculty members have been awarded the prestigious 2023 University System of Georgia Board of Regents Awards: one to highlight the work of an innovative research lab and the other to acknowledge a longtime faculty member’s dedication to the teaching field.
The two recipients were Research Catalyst Interim Associate Dean Iván M. Jorrín Abellán and professor Diana Gregory.
Jorrín Abellán established and serves as the head of the Bagwell College of Education’s Interactive Research Methods Lab. He accepted the Regents’ Teaching Excellence Award for Department or Program on behalf of the entire IRML lab team. Gregory, who serves as a professor in KSU’s College of the Arts, earned the Regents’ Award for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning.
According to the University System of Georgia’s website, these awards “represent our highest recognition for teaching and advising and illustrate the USG’s commitment to ensuring academic excellence for the citizens of Georgia.”
With the help of his Bagwell College of Education colleagues, Jorrín Abellán founded the IRML in 2019 with the hopes of providing an innovative space for students and faculty to plan and develop their research designs for their undergraduate research assignments, master’s degree capstone projects, research proposals and dissertations. The IRML is built upon a research framework and web model called the Hopscotch model, which Jorrín Abellán originally developed in 2015.
“It’s been almost four years, and a pandemic, since we launched the Interactive Research Methods Lab in the Bagwell College of Education with the aim of providing a transdisciplinary intersection that supports and promotes excellence in research learning and practice.” Jorrín Abellán said. “The 13 members of the Lab are thrilled and extremely happy for this very prestigious award. We believe that this recognition will certainly help boost our endeavors to democratize the teaching and learning of Research Methods in Georgia and beyond.”
The USG credits Gregory’s extensive background of service to the scholarship of teaching and learning as a factor that made her stand out among candidates for the award.
In her 21 years at KSU, Gregory has held many leadership roles including serving as a fellow for Creativity and Innovation at the KSU Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning, chair of the Inclusive Education Department in the Bagwell College, and working with the International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning. On top of this, she has also earned a long list of awards such as the 2009 National Art Education Association Southeastern Higher Education Teacher Award and the 2012 Georgia Art Education Association Teacher of the Year Award.
Nominees for the prestigious Regents’ Awards are put forward each year by the KSU Dean’s Council.
