Whether in the classroom, amid a research project, or on a ship in the Great Lakes, Keuka College’s Fall 2024 STAR Faculty panelists bring experience, expertise, and an extra dose of passion to their academic and extracurricular pursuits.
The word “passion” came up time and time again as this semester’s celebrated faculty members – Associate Professor of Biology Dr. Dominique Derminio, Professor of Chemistry Dr. Andrew Robak, and Instructor of Criminal Justice Michael Smith – discussed their philosophies of education and, at times, life with a supportive audience in the Hawkins Lounge on Thursday, October 17.
Dr. Derminio, who was selected for the panel after being recognized by her colleagues for Excellence in Experiential Learning, said she shares her passion for research with her students.
“I bring things I love to do into the classroom,” she said.
That includes the research on phytoplankton she conducted in the middle of Lake Erie this past summer alongside fellow educators and scientists aboard the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Research Vessel, Lake Guardian.
Dr. Andrew Robak, at right, addresses the audience alongside Instructor Michael Smith.
“I try to bring in real-world examples so that they essentially understand why it’s relevant,” said Dr. Derminio, a returning member of the STAR Faculty Panel (she was cited for Excellence in Teaching as an adjunct professor in 2021). “The more you can get them to care about a topic the more they’re willing to learn, and the more that they’ll learn in the long run.”
For Dr. Robak, who was cited for Excellence in Academic Achievement, incorporating research into his teaching is an effective way of engaging students. Currently, that includes using a device called a Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometer to allow students to analyze and identify the chemical composition of aromas in products like apples or perfumes.
“I use the research as teaching,” he said. "Students join the research project with me and then they get lab experience, organizational experience … the research projects that we do here – and this is the nice thing about being at Keuka – they’re kind of teaching projects."
With a previous career in civil law enforcement following service in the U.S. Air Force, Instructor Smith has plenty of past experience to draw from in his second career as an educator. Recognized for Excellence in Academic Advising, he uses his own passion for the criminal justice system to ignite passion in his students.
The panel was moderated by Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Heather Moldanado, at left.
“Because of how I got to where I am, I’ve been very passionate about how I’ve achieved things,” he said. “Too many of us reach the end of our career and we retire, we leave – but all that knowledge, all that experience, all that passion; you’ve got to give it back.”
As a result, he said, the most rewarding aspect of academia is, “Helping our students find their passion.”
For the STAR Faculty panelists, passion and learning go hand in hand – for their students as well as for themselves.
“I like learning,” said Dr. Derminio. “I will probably keep learning forever because it’s just something that I have a passion for. And that passion is something that I try to instill in my students.”
The STAR Faculty Panel was launched during the Fall 2021 semester to spotlight the College’s high-achieving instructors. Each semester, three to five faculty members are honored with inclusion to the panel.
