Faculty & Staff Awards
Amy Allocco
Amy Allocco awarded Fulbright, AIIS fellowships to study in India
Professor of Religious Studies Amy Allocco was awarded two major research fellowships to conduct ethnographic research in South India and expand knowledge of an unstudied class of Hindu drummer-priests.
The U.S. Department of State and the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board awarded Allocco a Fulbright-Nehru Academic and Professional Excellence Fellowship. The American Institute of Indian Studies awarded her a senior fellowship. Allocco will spend eight months in Tamil Nadu, India, in 2023-24 completing an ethnographic study of three generations of Hindu drummer-priests and artists, known as pampaikkārar, who lead religious and cultural rituals including family rites, domestic ceremonies and temple festivals.
Kirstin Ringelberg - Clark Art Institute Fellow
Kirstin Ringelberg named Clark Art Institute Fellow
Professor of Art History Kirstin Ringelberg was named the 2023-24 Kaleta A. Doolin Foundation Fellow for the Clark Art Institute.
Ringelberg’s six-month residential fellowship in Williamston, Massachusetts, begins in January 2024. They will spend that time completing a manuscript about art genres and genders in 19th and 20th century France, focusing on the life and art of Medeleine Lemaire — a highly successful artist and teacher often overlooked — and advancing the study of queer issues in art and art history.
The Clark’s Research and Academic Program annually selects from among top international scholars to award fellowships. It is one of only a handful of fellowships dedicated to art history.
Institutional
Ann Cahill, Mary Jo Festle - Distinguished University Professors
Ann Cahill, Mary Jo Festle named Distinguished University Professors
Ann Cahill and Mary Jo Festle were named Elon University’s seventh and eighth Distinguished University Professors in spring 2023. Cahill is a professor of philosophy and director of the National and International Fellowships Office. Festle is the Maude Sharpe Powell Professor of History. The Distinguished University Professorship is bestowed upon occasion to senior faculty members to honor their teaching, scholarship, leadership and service to the Elon community.
Kirstin Ringelberg - Daniels-Danieley Award for Excellence in Teaching
Daniels-Danieley Award for Excellence in Teaching
Kirstin Ringelberg, professor of art history
Professor of Art History Kirstin Ringelberg was recognized as a shining example of Elon’s teacher-scholar-mentor model and dedication to student success and well-being when receiving the Daniels-Danieley Award for Excellence in Teaching.
Ringelberg joined Elon in 2003 and innovated approaches to teaching and assessment, combining best practices in anti-racist pedagogy with creative approaches to grading and metacognitive reflection. They have mentored 29 independent research projects and inspired numerous alumni to strive for and achieve excellence at Elon and in chosen careers.
Ringelberg is the 51st recipient of the award established by President Emeritus J. Earl Danieley ’46 and his wife, Verona Daniels Danieley, in honor of their parents.
Caroline Ketcham - Distinguished Scholar Award
Distinguished Scholar Award
Caroline Ketcham, professor of exercise science
A prolific and preeminent scholar in the field of exercise science, Professor Caroline Ketcham’s scholarship and research has developed broad and deep expertise in motor control, with a particular focus on using features of the control and coordination of movement to understand neural function.
Ketcham joined Elon in 2007 as an assistant professor, served eight years as department chair and was named full professor in 2017. She is co-director and co-creator of the Elon BrainCARE Research Institute, which focuses on concussion research, as well as mental health for students and student-athletes. She has published more than 65 peer-reviewed articles and co-edited two collections.
Ketcham is the 24th recipient of the Distinguished Scholar Award, which recognizes a faculty member whose research has earned peer commendation and respect and who has made significant contributions to their field of study.
Jessica Merricks - Periclean Award for Civic Engagement and Social Responsibility
Periclean Award for Civic Engagement and Social Responsibility
Jessica Merricks, assistant professor of biology
Assistant Professor of Biology Jessica Merricks was recognized with the Periclean Award for Civic Engagement and Social Responsibility for her advocacy around clean drinking water education initiatives in central North Carolina, her work with Elon’s Advancing Equity Requirement advisory committee, and as a member of a team developing a pipeline to Elon for STEM majors from Alamance Community College.
Merricks is the 21st recipient of the Periclean Award for Civic Engagement and Social Responsibility, which is given each year to a member of Elon’s faculty or staff whose community service exemplifies the ideals of Project Pericles.
Anthony Rizzuto - A.L. Hook Professorship
A.L. Hook Professorship
Anthony Rizzuto, associate professor of chemistry
Associate Professor of Chemistry Anthony Rizutto was named the A.L. Hook Emerging Professor in Science and Mathematics at Opening Day ceremonies in August 2022. The three-year professorship is awarded to a faculty member with active scholarship, a history of mentoring undergraduate research and a demonstrated ability to impact students.
Rizzuto graduated magna cum laude from Elon in 2011 and joined the faculty in fall 2017. He has since mentored 12 students in undergraduate research resulting in regional and national conference presentations, multiple external grant awards and manuscripts for publication in peer-reviewed journals.
The Hook professorship will provide him resources to advance research conducted with undergraduates in the area of spectroscopy.
Kristina Meinking - Trustee Chair for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching
Trustee Chair for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching
Kristina Meinking, professor of classical languages and coordinator of the Classical Studies Program
Kristina Meinking, a professor in classical languages, was selected in May as the inaugural Trustee Chair for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching.
The Elon University Board of Trustees created the three-year endowed professorship in spring 2022 to recognize a member of faculty for excellence in teaching and promote undergraduate teaching excellence. Meinking joined Elon in 2010, was promoted to assistant professor in 2012, associate professor in 2017 and full professor in 2023. She served as associate director of the Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning from 2017 to 2019, and in 2019 began serving as the assistant director for assessment in the Elon Core Curriculum.
Colleagues and students praised Meinking’s innovation, passion and thoughtfulness in teaching, mentoring and scholarship, citing her as a model of how to build a community around learning and critical reflection.
Jeffrey Pugh - Elon Medallion
Elon Medallion
Jeffrey Pugh, professor emeritus of religious studies and Distinguished University Professor
Professor Emeritus of Religious Studies Jeffrey Pugh was presented the Elon Medallion, the university’s highest honor, in Opening Day ceremonies August 2022. Pugh taught for 32 years at Elon before retiring in 2018, earning numerous institutional awards for his teaching and scholarship.
Pugh broadened the scope of the Department of Religious Studies to examine the role of religion in societies around the globe. He was a founding faculty member of Elon’s Service Learning Community and piloted the Global Studies course that is now an integral part of the Core Curriculum.
Pugh endowed the Thomas O. and Frances L. Pugh Department of Religious Studies Award in honor of his parents to support seniors pursuing graduate studies in religion or divinity school degrees.