Assistant provost for teaching and learning and executive director of the Center for Engaged Learning, Peter Felten was one of four honored with the network’s 2018 Bob Pierleoni Spirit of POD Award.
Peter Felten, assistant provost for teaching and learning and executive director of the Center for Engaged Learning, has been honored for his work in the area of educational development and contributions to the Professional & Organizational Development Network in Higher Education.
Felten was one of four presented with the 2018 Bob Pierleoni Spirit of POD Award, the top honor for the organization which is a professional society for people who work in faculty and educational development in the United States. Felten received the award at the POD Network’s annual conference in Portland, Oregon.
Felten has held multiple leadership positions within POD, and is recognized for serving the organization “quietly and behind the scenes.” His leadership style with POD was described by nominators as “generating the best possible outcome for a group and making a group feel as though each individual member had a critical part to play in the outcome.”
The award recognized Felten’s contributions to his profession, including his formal scholarship, delivery of talks and workshops, participation in higher education research projects and contributions as an editor, organizer and leader for conferences and journals. One nominator noted that Felten exemplified the philosophy, principles and practices of POD by making “multiple small gestures on a daily basis, and they translate into large, meaningful connections for the rest of us.”
Felten was joined by colleagues from Harvard University, Otterbein University and Duquesne University in receiving the award, whose namesake was a long-time member of POD Network who made significant contributions to its work before he passed away in 1990.