Faculty Achievements
Saint Mary's award-winning, internationally-known faculty, with an unparalleled commitment to students, are also recognized for achievements in their fields.
Lisa Manter from our School of Liberal Arts has been awarded a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
The award is for Professor Manter's program, Teaching Literacy and Filmic Narrative Strategies for West Coast Public History Museum Exhibitions. This award spans disciplines and promises to bridge the space between the classroom and museum. It is well aligned with Saint Mary's growing Public History initiative, which was originally seeded by an earlier NEH grant. It also demonstrates the kind of interdisciplinary collaboration, community engagement, and innovation that are central to the liberal arts.
Dr. Michael Marchetti of our School of Science, along with other co-authors, have published a new textbook, Ecology in a Changing World, with W. W. Norton.
According to the publisher's website, the book "teaches students to think like ecologists, developing their quantitative skills and illuminating connections between research data and real-world phenomena."
Associate Professor Mary Raygoza has co-authored the book, Middle School Mathematics Lessons to Explore, Understand, and Respond to Social Injustice
"If you teach middle school math and have wanted to promote social justice, but haven’t been sure how to get started, you need to check out this book. It incorporates lessons you can use immediately as well as how to foster the kind of classroom community where students will thrive. It’s the kind of book you’ll want to have alongside you to support you throughout your journey." - Author and Consultant Robert Kaplinsky
Professor Sonya Schuh and Her Research Students Featured on HBO Max Docu-Series “Not So Pretty”
Emmy-winning and Oscar-nominated film company Jane Doe Film productions filmed a small team of undergraduate researchers at Saint Mary’s College in the summer of 2020 for its four-part docu-series, Not So Pretty, which was released April 14 on HBO Max. The show focuses on the truth behind the beauty industry: Jane Doe Productions reached out to Professor Sonya Schuh in light of her research with students on the effects of unregulated toxins in skin care products.
Professor Lysley Tenorio Awarded Guggenheim Fellowship
Saint Mary’s College is thrilled to announce that MFA in Creative Writing and English Department Professor Lysley Tenorio has been awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship. The Guggenheim Foundation has awarded fellowships this year to 180 American and Canadian scientists, scholars in the social sciences and humanities, and writers and artists of all kinds, selected from nearly 2,500 applicants.
Tenorio’s most recent novel, The Son of Good Fortune (Ecco/HarperCollins, 2020), explores the bond between a Filipino mother and son as they try to forge an existence as undocumented immigrants in America.
Professor Matthew Zapruder Chosen to Edit Best American Poetry 2022
Saint Mary’s MFA in Creative Writing and English Department Professor Matthew Zapruder has been named the editor of The Best American Poetry 2022. Each year, a well-respected poet is invited to comb through the poetry published in the previous year and decide which pieces should appear in this annual best-of volume. The news caught Zapruder by surprise.
Professor María Luisa Ruiz Receives Summer Fulbright Award
Director of the Institute for Latino and Latin American Studies (ILaLS) and current Senior Diversity Officer María Luisa Ruiz, PhD, was selected for a 2021 Fulbright-Hays Seminars Abroad Program to Mexico. Ruiz participated in the summer program called The Third Root: Exploring African Heritage in Mexico. A select group of academics from across the United States traveled through Veracruz, the Gulf Coast, and Oaxaca to study the arts and music, as well as traditional cuisine and medicine.
Professor Ted Tsukahara to Be Honored as Community Ally of the Year
Integral Tutor and Professor Ted Tsukahara, AFSC, SMC ’62, PhD, has been named the Community Ally of the Year by the Contra Costa Labor Council and Contra Costa Building and Construction Trades Council. “Tutor Ted,” Saint Mary’s 2021–2022 Professor of the Year, will be honored at the group’s 24th annual Labor to Labor dinner held at Saint Mary’s on Sept. 16. Tsukahara has worked diligently in support of labor issues through SMC’s John F. Henning Institute, which he helped to establish 25 years ago, and for which he serves as Director.
Professor Aaron D. Sachowitz Named American Council on Education Fellow
Saint Mary’s College is pleased to announce that Communication Professor Aaron D. Sachowitz, PhD, has been named an American Council on Education (ACE) Fellow for the academic year 2022–2023. The fellowship aims to enrich the capacity of leaders to problem solve and innovate. Sachowitz will work with the president and senior officials at a host institution, and focus on issues of interest and concern to Saint Mary’s.
Professor Bedford Palmer’s Second Children’s Book Addresses Race
Department Chair of the Counseling Department Bedford Palmer II, PhD, has become a beloved children’s author. After receiving raves on his first book, Daddy, Why Am I Brown: A Healthy Conversation About Skin Color and Family, Professor Palmer is engaged in a Kickstarter campaign to help him create and distribute his second book, Black Joy: A Healthy Conversation About Race.