Olga Petkova Honored with CCSU’s 2007-2008 Excellence in Teaching Award;  Ruth Lentini Recipient from Adjunct Faculty

Central Connecticut State University has honored Dr. Olga Petkova, professor in the Department of Management Information Systems, School of Business, with the prestigious 2007-2008 Excellence in Teaching Award.

An outstanding practitioner and academic in the field of Information Technology for some 29 years, of which eleven were involved in the development and research of software for industrial applications, Petkova has brought her practical experience to the classroom where students and colleagues agree she is an exemplary educator. “Teaching is a rewarding and joyful experience. It is a deep satisfaction to have the opportunity to open the doors of knowledge to students and to see them successful in their careers,” states Petkova who joined CCSU in 2001. “My belief is that teaching at university level should be done as a cooperative activity between the students and the professor. I see my responsibilities as a facilitator of the students’ learning process and as an advisor in their discovery of knowledge.”

At a ceremony on the New Britain campus Nov. 9, CCSU Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Carl Lovitt announced that Dr. Petkova was top award recipient. For the second year in the award’s history, an Adjunct Faculty member was recognized. Ruth Lentini, in the Reading and Language Arts department of the School of Education & Professional Studies, was honored with an Excellence in Teaching Award among adjunct faculty.

CCSU President Jack Miller acknowledged the many superb educators on the CCSU faculty named as Excellence in Teaching finalists and semifinalists, along with those listed on a Teaching Honor Roll. Each was individually honored at the ceremony. (See list below)

Award finalists were Candace Barrington, associate professor of English, Philip Halloran, professor of mathematical sciences, James Mulrooney, associate professor of biomolecular sciences, Olga Petkova, professor of management information systems, and Ruth Lentini, adjunct on the Reading and Languages Arts faculty.

Selection of honorees is based on a comprehensive evaluation process with nominations coming from students and alumni; full- and-part-time faculty members are eligible. The honorees are widely acknowledged by colleagues and students for dedication to teaching that inspires extraordinary learning.

Reading from the recommendations of the Excellence in Teaching Award committee, Dr. Lovitt stated: “Dr. Petkova’s students are expected to work collaboratively on very demanding projects using a wide variety of high tech tools, admirably preparing them for professional lives of expertise.  The demand of her assignments promises that not only can the students who succeed in her classes walk on water, but, should they need a life raft, they will also know just where to find one.  As a presenter she wears many hats, continuously switching among teacher, advisor, project manager, team motivator, and customer.  Her theoretical and practical knowledge fuels and guides this process.  Her compelling sense of mission, the efficiency of her approach in the classroom, her assessment of her own teaching, and the evidence of her students’ intellectual output make her a truly Excellent Teacher.”

Dr. Marianne D’Onofrio, professor and chair of the MIS department praised Petkova, who in addition to her MIS undergraduate courses also teaches in the Master of Science in Computer Information Technology interdisciplinary program: “Dr. Petkova is an active researcher who is currently engaged in research and scholarly activities that range from theory to practice in the management information systems discipline.  Her research streams include software development productivity, systems thinking, community informatics and information systems education and, this, informs her teaching.”

Student Enzo Pistritto remembers vividly, “The first night I listened to a lecture from Dr. Petkova in my MIS class, I knew that the semester would be an excellent learning experience and benefit to my career. Dr. Petkova exhibited a sense of enthusiasm in the subject matter which was easily seen by the class and at the same time this reflection carried throughout the entire semester and was reciprocated by the students.” He lauded her “ability to keep the class motivated and engaged in a climate of sharing and learning during the entire class period.”

Petkova is author of more than 95 journal and conference papers, 27 of which are pedagogical publications reflecting her teaching, curriculum development and assessment experiences. She holds the degrees of Doctor of Commerce (Informatics), University of Pretoria; Bachelor of Education, University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa; and M.Sc. in Technical Cybernetics (includes a B.Sc.) from the Technical University Brno, Czech Republic. Native of Bulgaria, she has taught before in Africa at the University of Natal, University of Durban- Westville, Durban University of Technology in South Africa and at the University of Zimbabwe. She is a resident of New Britain. Dr. Petkova is donating her $1000 prize for MIS student scholarships.

Adjunct Excellence in Teaching Award

Ruth Lentini is a former teacher in the Ellington Public Schools and currently a learning consultant for the South Windsor Public Schools. She holds the undergraduate (elementary education) and master’s (reading) degrees from CCSU and is a graduate of Central’s 6^th year certificate program. She resides in Durham, CT.

Former CCSU student Susan E. Horvath, who took Lentini’s upper level Literacy in the Elementary Schools class, describes Lentini as energetic, effective and enthusiastic. Horvath states, “Mrs. Lentini’s teaching style was innovative. She taught our college class using a parallel format as she would have taught a true elementary classroom. We learned about and participated in activities, assignments, games and teaching techniques and strategies that could all be utilized in actual classrooms, with appropriate modifications to suit our learning.”

According to an Excellence in Teaching Award committee statement: “Professor Lentini is a teacher of teachers, polishing professionals who are already practicing in the infinitely creative world of reading and literacy, skills at the center of our definition of civilization.  In the classroom she moves with the precision of a Swiss watch, planning and executing with extraordinary efficiency while responding to a tremendous amount of student work.  Yet in that efficient precision there is ample room for each student’s unique contribution.  Using various approaches to learning, Professor Lentini has constructed her classroom practices based not only on conventional approaches to teaching reading, but also on detailed analysis of teaching aids and their innovative and disciplined use in classroom.  Students learn not only how to teach reading but also how to improve their own reading and writing skills.  Her innovation, dedication to her students’ learning, and efficiency are just some of many qualities that make her a truly Excellent Teacher.”