CETL Honors Graduate Student Teachers

Meet the winners of this year’s Graduate Excellence in Teaching Awards

Graduate students at UM are great teachers—and no one knows that better than the judges of the Graduate Excellence in Teaching Awards at CETL and the Graduate School. Determining award winners this year was especially difficult because of the many outstanding applications we received. But in the end, two graduate teachers really stood out. 

The winner of this year’s Graduate TA Award is Jakub Zegar, a PhD student in Biology. In his application, Jakub wrote that his teaching is built on “cultivating an inclusive and welcoming environment,” “acknowledging and recognizing that education is more than just a letter grade on a transcript,” and “seeing and meeting students at their level.” He connects with students by treating them as fellow scholars, sharing his own academic struggles, and linking biological concepts to student experiences, among other things.

Jakub was nominated for the award by no fewer than 16 of his students. These students emphasized Jakub’s enthusiasm about biology and his ability to make the material engaging and enjoyable. One nominator noted that “Jakub has helped me grow as a budding scientist tremendously, introducing me to the lab environment and the potential of a career in science.” Another told a memorable story about Jakub’s teaching:

“I remember one time I was giving a presentation and told the class, ‘I don’t know how this works, it’s outside the scope of what I researched.’ I felt really bad saying this because I hadn’t meant to ramble further in explanation than I myself understood. Jakub made a point after I was done to congratulate me on saying that I didn’t know the answer. He told me and the class that it was perfectly fine to not know and how that sentiment drives the progress of science and knowledge. I just thought that was really cool.”

Judges took particular notice of Jakub’s commitment to creating an environment in which all students can thrive. “Jakub’s impressive application included consistently strong feedback from students for whom he served as TA,” said Dr. Liz Norell, an Associate Director at CETL. “In his teaching philosophy, he emphasizes the importance of cultivating an inclusive learning environment, and the student feedback in his application makes clear he’s working hard to do so.”

“Being chosen as a recipient of the CETL’s Graduate Excellence in Teaching Award is undoubtedly one of the proudest moments in my academic journey,” said Jakub. “It serves as a reminder that my efforts as an educator do not go unnoticed and reaffirms my commitment to cultivating a comfortable and welcoming learning environment.”

The winner of this year’s Johnny W. Lott Graduate Instructor Award is Apoorva Mate, who is graduating this May with a PhD in Mathematics. Apoorva writes that her teaching is “driven by the belief that mathematics is a skill to be refined rather than an innate talent.” One of her main goals is to help students who might not see themselves as “math people” develop positive attitudes toward math in addition to the advanced mathematical skills they need. 

She does this by asking students to act as collaborators when solving math problems in class and creating assignments that help them assess their own learning, identifying focus areas for practice and further study. She also uses real world scenarios in her teaching, exploring linear regression, for example, by having students discuss how the number of hours an influencer spends creating content in a week might correlate with an increase in their followers.

In her teaching evaluations, students emphasize that Apoorva is committed to their success as mathematicians and good at adapting the pace and level of her lectures to the students in the room. Her nominator, Dr. Kayla Harville, noted that she is skilled at creating the “kind of comfortable classroom environment [that] is important to foster but difficult to achieve.” She went on to share that Apoorva often uses novel methods to help struggling students, such as employing “body doubling” to help students avoid distraction while completing challenging homework tasks.

The judges were impressed by Apoorva’s “student-centered teaching philosophy” and the inclusivity of her instruction. They also noted her commitment to enhancing teaching within her discipline more broadly. “I was excited to see that she’s organizing a workshop on accessible and inclusive math classrooms at an upcoming national conference,” said Dr. Derek Bruff, a fellow mathematician and Visiting Associate Director at CETL. “This points to her dedication to teaching and to her teaching community.”

“Winning the Graduate Instructor Award is a profound honor that validates my dedication to math education and inspires me to continue striving for excellence in my teaching practice,” said Apoorva. “I am deeply grateful for the incredible support provided by the CETL and the math department, which has made this achievement possible.”

Jakub and Apoorva will be honored at the Graduate School Doctoral Hooding Ceremony on May 8. Congratulations to these outstanding teachers!