Dolphin Award for Outstanding Teaching by a Member of the Adjunct Faculty: Susan Rocco, Adjunct Faculty in the Department of English
You joined the English faculty at the College of Staten Island in 1996 as an Adjunct Lecturer. You received an AA in Liberal Arts and Sciences, a BA in English Linguistics, and an MSEd in Secondary Education all from the College of Staten Island. You have been an extremely active member of the English Department and the College community for the past 20 years. In the classroom, you employ your effective teaching skills in basic writing and composition courses, and you have also used your pedagogical prowess in the College’s immersion programs, where you prepare students to retake the CUNY Assessment Tests in Reading and Writing, earning an exceptional pass rate of 70 percent. You are also an innovative teacher, as you were instrumental in the development of CSI’s Hybrid Initiative. Hybrid courses, which are part face-to-face instruction and part online, are more challenging for students because they require a higher degree of independence, so you also ensure that student progress is accurately assessed. You also continue to evaluate your own performance, constantly updating your lesson plans. In addition, your quick wit has been known to disarm the most reluctant student. Outside of the classroom, you are also very dedicated, volunteering on a number of committees, including the ENG 111/115 committee and the Provost’s Task Force on Student Success, among others, and you also present at workshops and conferences. As an Adjunct, you are not required to perform these extra tasks, but you do them because you are a passionate educator.
