“Every year I’m amazed and pleased when the spotlight shines on these exceptional individuals,” said Jay A. Lee, president of Northeastern. “The hard work and professionalism they exemplify should be an inspiration to all of us.”
The categories and awardees are as follows:
Faculty of the Year
Clint Rothell, associate professor of philosophy, has taught at Northeastern since the fall semester of 2014. His liberal arts department colleagues praise Clint for his “overt, infectious passion” about his subject, and are impressed with how he so easily engages and inspires students. He is widely known to keep his teaching methods “creative, accessible and engaging” while employing novel, effective strategies to help students succeed in and beyond the classroom. He will go beyond course content at times to teach valuable soft skills such as relationship building, and offers students a safe environment that fosters inspiration and new perspectives. Students also shared laudatory comments about Clint’s teaching methods, often describing his classes as “fun,” but “highly informative learning experiences.” Clint clearly loves teaching philosophy, and genuinely cares about the success of his students, and is Northeastern’s 2019 Faculty of the Year honoree.
Adjunct Faculty of the Year
Madeleine Ruble, the 2019 Adjunct Faculty of the Year at Northeastern, is a professor of liberal arts. She began teaching at Northeastern in the fall of 2017. Colleagues regard Madeleine as an “excellent instructor” in both ESL (English as a second language) and geography. Colleagues confirm she puts in “countless hours” as a volunteer to various international student service projects year-in and year-out. She is an integral member of Northeastern’s popular Food and Culture Fair, helping book entertainers and hosting students in her own kitchen to prepare food for the event. She also organizes enriching cultural activities for Northeastern’s international students such as bowling parties, corn maze trips, and even a trip to a Denver Nuggets basketball game. She is regarded as an “extremely dedicated” adjunct professor, and “the type of person that often flies under the radar with all the wonderful things she does for the college.”
Staff awards
Doug Werner, structural trades technician, was honored as the 2019 Classified Employee of the Year, and Melissa Bornhoft, Assistant Director of the Monahan Learning Center (MLC), was recognized as 2019’s Administrative/Professional/Technical (APT) Employee of the Year.
Peers cited Werner’s friendly, service-with-a-smile demeanor when going about his work as a structural tradesman. Melissa works to keep the MLC functioning smoothly with energy and enthusiasm. She “truly personifies the concept of putting our students first,” as one colleague put it.
Nominees were selected by their peers among faculty and staff as part of a standardized, statewide process conducted locally by Northeastern’s human resources department. Nominees in each category subsequently received votes by peers and colleagues for each category. The awardees were recognized last month at the start of two days of “in-service,” a series of formal meetings Northeastern faculty and staff routinely have in preparation for each new semester.
These honorees are invited to join their counterparts from the other 12 Colorado Community College System schools to an awards luncheon with Gov. Jared Polis at the Colorado Governor’s Mansion in Denver on March 11.