Three Cedarville University faculty receive excellence awards

Cedarville University. Contributed

Cedarville University. Contributed

The Strategic Ohio Council for Higher Education (SOCHE) has recognized three Cedarville University faculty with awards for service, teaching and leadership excellence. Those honored with the 2023-24 SOCHE award are J. Michael McKay, Tom Betcher and Rod Johnson.

Each school has the opportunity to select one Faculty Excellence Award winner based on their institution’s criteria, with consideration for demonstrated excellence in teaching, service, and/or scholarship. Similarly, the schools each chose one Staff Excellence Award winner based on their institution’s criteria, with consideration of demonstrated excellence in student success, service, and/or assessment. Finally, each college or university selected a winner for the Campus Impact Award, which is based on institutional selection criteria, with consideration for performance that made a positive impact on the school or campus, as a whole. This category is open to faculty, staff, or administrators.

McKay, associate professor of biblical theology, received the Faculty Excellence Award.

Betcher, director of assessment and accreditation services, received the Staff Excellence Award

Johnson, associate vice president of operations received the Campus Impact Award.

According to the SOCHE website, the nominees were recognized for:

McKay receives exceptional student evaluations at all levels of teaching, including freshman-level to masters-level classes and four out of the five Bible Minor courses. He serves on university-wide sub-committees and is the director of Online Graduate Bible Programs. As a scholar, he presents at professional societies, both regionally and nationally. This past year, he published two articles in internationally recognized journals, and he is currently working on another book project.

Students consistently comment on the clarity of McKay’s teaching and course design. In addition to students in the classroom, his New Testament Literature class is available online through the Bible Minor Project. The institution regularly receives comments about how this class is used effectively in local churches and for personal study. McKay consistently receives teaching evaluations exceeding 4.7/5.0, with class sizes ranging from 15 to 170 students.

Betcher has been dedicated to supporting the entire Academic Division as they work through the processes required for accreditation. He understands both the general (HLC) and program-specific (i.e. ABET) accreditation criteria and moves faculty towards completion of documents that are critical for proper assessment of programs. Students don’t always have the privilege to interact with Betcher in his role, but since he also acts as the campus liaison for the ROTC programs on campus, every Air Force and Army ROTC student benefits from his interactions with the cadre commanders at Central State and Wright State universities.

Johnson has worked to grow the campus and provide a safe and healthy learning environment for all students. Under his leadership as associate vice president of Operations, the campus is in stellar condition, both in what is seen and what is unseen. Vendors and visitors comment that the campus is beautiful, and all the buildings look new, even though many are well-aged. He has a direct impact on the development of new housing, dining options, academic space, outdoor living areas and athletic facilities. His projects are always on schedule and on budget.

With its origin in 1967, the Strategic Ohio Council for Higher Education is an organization made up of 22 colleges and universities located throughout Ohio.

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