Central honors two faculty members with prestigious Excellence in Teaching Award
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Central honors two faculty members with prestigious Excellence in Teaching Award
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – May 15, 2026
NEW BRITAIN, Conn. – The Excellence in Teaching (EIT) Committee at Central Connecticut State University announced the winners of the annual EIT Awards during Faculty Appreciation Day on May 11. The committee presents the award to one full-time faculty member and one part-time faculty member every year.
Dr. Diana Cohen, a professor of Political Science, won the full-time faculty award, and Engineering lecturer Evan Morel ’14 won the part-time faculty award. (Photo attached.)
To be eligible for the EIT Award, professors must be nominated by a Central student. This year, students submitted 333 nominations, and from those nominations, 153 faculty members (119 full-time and 34 part-time) submitted applications.
Cohen noted, “I feel deeply humbled to be recognized among Central’s faculty,” Cohen said. “This is an immensely meaningful honor.”
“The recognition means the world, not only from the peer and colleague point of view, but to know that this award started with my students,” Morel said.
In welcoming remarks before the ceremony, Central President Zulma R. Toro said, “Today, we gather to celebrate the important work of teaching. As our students and our world evolve, so too must our approaches in the classroom. The faculty we honor this evening exemplify that dedication through their willingness to learn, to innovate, and to meet students where they are.”
Members of the EIT Committee evaluated each faculty member; conducted in-depth discussions; and selected and interviewed finalists before making their final decision. (Watch a video about the winners and finalists here and view the full list of awardees and Honor Roll recipients online.)
This year’s full-time finalists included Gurbakhshash Singh, a professor of Mathematical Sciences, and Sarah Evans Zalewski ’03, ’12, a member of the Counselor Education & Family Therapy faculty. Corey Nagle ’13 in the Earth and Space Sciences Department was a finalist in the part-time faculty category.
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