University of Nevada-Reno Faculty Member Wins National Faculty Mentor of the Year Award

News SREB News Release

Dr. Kelly CrossKelly Cross, an assistant professor of chemical engineering at the University of Nevada, Reno, was awarded one of six national Faculty Mentor of the Year awards at the 26th annual Institute on Teaching and Mentoring in October in Atlanta, Georgia. The Institute is the nation’s largest annual gathering of underrepresented Ph.D. students and college faculty members of color.

Cross was nominated for the award by Stephany Santos, a biomedical engineering Ph.D. student at the University of Connecticut, who said that a key highlight of Cross’s mentorship is, “her ability to listen deeply, probe deeper, and help navigate students to success in uncharted territory based on their needs, skills, and personality.” 

Doctoral student Stephany Santos accepts the award from Dr. Ken Pepion on behalf of Dr. Cross.

To address the nation’s continuing shortage of African-American, Hispanic and Native American faculty, the SREB-State Doctoral Scholars Program hosts the annual Institute on Teaching and Mentoring, a collaboration of programs across the country that support minority Ph.D. students.

The Institute on Teaching and Mentoring is the largest gathering of minority doctoral scholars in the country. Now in its 26th year, the Institute gives the issue of faculty diversity a national focus and provides minority scholars with the strategies necessary to survive the rigors of graduate school, earn the doctoral degree and succeed as members of the professorate.

Contact: Veronica Johnson 404-879-5536

Or Ansley Abraham 404-879-5573