Part-time instructor honored with faculty award

Allysia Fine | The Ranger History instructor Alan Cox received one of six Faculty Excellence Awards this year.

Alan Cox, a part-time history instructor, has been honored with a Faculty Excellence Award.

“I found out an hour before,” Cox said. “Totally out of the blue; I didn’t even know they gave them.”

The award is given to faculty members based on their talents and contributions to Amarillo College.

Jerry Moller, dean of arts and sciences, said that in order for a part-time instructor to be nominated for the award, staff members look at student evaluations, student testimonials, longevity as an effective faculty member, years of service to AC and contributions to the department and institution.

The Faculty Excellence in Part-Time Instruction award includes effective use of instructional strategies, student engagement, increases in student success rates, innovative content delivery and important program contributions.

Allysia Fine | The Ranger History instructor Alan Cox received one of six Faculty Excellence Awards this year.
Allysia Fine | The Ranger History instructor Alan Cox received one of six Faculty Excellence Awards this year.

Cox received his bachelor’s degree from Texas Tech University and his master’s degree in history from West Texas A&M University.

Though he took only one class at AC himself, both of his children graduated from AC.

He taught at Randall High School, where he once was named Teacher of the Year.

Cox now serves as an assistant principal at Randall.

He is in his 22nd year at AC as a part-time instructor and said he plans to remain even after his retirement from the public schools.

“It’s a different world,” he said.

Moller said it was easy to nominate Cox for the award.

“He brings history to life,” Moller said. “He makes history real and exciting.”

Moller wasn’t the only person to say that Cox deserved the award.

“Alan Cox has been here longer than me,” said Dr. Brian Farmer, a social sciences professor. “Alan is very well liked by the students, and he’s very well liked by his colleagues here at Amarillo College, too.”

Be the first to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.


*


This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.