October 7, 2002

Psychology professor Faye Crosby honored for teaching

By Jennifer McNulty

Faye J. Crosby, a professor of psychology at UC Santa Cruz, has received the highest honor for excellence in teaching offered by the Division of Social Sciences.

Crosby received the division's 2001-02 Distinguished Teaching Award, also known as the "Golden Apple Award," during the dean's annual convocation October 2.

Martin Chemers, dean of the Social Sciences Division, presented the award, which recognizes outstanding undergraduate teaching in the social sciences, to Crosby at the breakfast gathering. The award carries with it a cash prize and an engraved plaque.

"The secret is bring them food," quipped Crosby, as she accepted the award.

Crosby is a leading authority on affirmative action in education and business and has done research on the subject of balancing work and family. She is the author of Juggling: The Unexpected Advantages of Balancing Career and Home for Women and their Families.

Her third area of research is mentoring; she is coeditor of Mentoring Dilemmas: Developmental Relationships within the Multicultural Organization. Crosby was honored for her undergraduate teaching at Smith College and Yale University, where she was on the faculty before coming to UCSC in 1998. She earned her B.A. in European history from Wheaton College and her Ph.D. from Boston University.

The Golden Apple Award is presented annually to as many as three faculty members, but Crosby was singled out this year as the solo recipient. In explaining the committee's decision, Chemers said Crosby "lapped the competition."

"Every so often, one faculty member stands out so far above the others, and this is one of those times," he said.

Crosby was selected by Chemers from a list of recommendations compiled by a faculty committee based on nominations put forth by department chairs. The committee is chaired by Daniel Press, an associate professor of environmental studies and a former award winner, who said of Crosby, "Students routinely call her the best instructor they've had at UCSC." The annual awards were established in 1991.

Social sciences is one of five academic divisions at UCSC; the others are arts, engineering humanities, and natural sciences. Each division is home to a wide range of departments and programs. Social sciences includes anthropology, community studies, economics, environmental studies, Latin American and Latino studies, legal studies, politics, psychology, and sociology.

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