Hegarty Award Citation for Professor Allyson Sheckler

The Louise F. Hegarty Award for Excellence in Teaching is given each year to a full-time faculty member whose teaching has had a marked influence on the lives of Stonehill students. The Committee on Excellence in Teaching, representing the Students, Faculty, and the Alumni Council, selects the outstanding teacher from those nominated by students and faculty members. The recipient stands as a symbol of the entire faculty’s commitment to academic excellence. At Convocation 2007, Stonehill College is proud to bestow the Hegarty Award on Professor Allyson Sheckler.

 

 

Professor Sheckler’s commitment to Stonehill’s mission is abundantly clear in the words of those who nominated her. We will let them speak for themselves.

 

Prof. Sheckler is one of those teachers who truly makes a difference. She takes her time to listen to what you have to say in class, and her love of the subject shines through every time she gets excited over the smallest detail in a sculpture or painting.

 

I felt intimidated when I entered her class, having had no previous art history education. However, Prof. Sheckler soon taught me to view art with a critical and thoughtful eye. In class, she has a relaxed attitude and prefers to hear from her students, rather than lecturing about what we should see in art.

 

Prof. Sheckler has been an outstanding educator, an invaluable resource, and an inspiring mentor. She is genuinely interested in student learning, and would willingly give up her lunch hour to read a draft, to offer graduate school advice, or to talk about her passionate love of art history. She brings a natural energy to the classroom and a refreshing twist on material that she has (undoubtedly) taught before. She has an interest in improving the quality of the student who enters her classroom: to make them think outside the box, develop a persuasive argument, and write eloquently about art.

 

Her exuberance is unmatched. She allows the student to share her pleasure in the subject matter, making the learning process fun and exciting.

 

As I make the transition between college and law school, I will take with me the learning tools and successful attitude Prof. Sheckler instilled in me. I will never again enter a building without analyzing the architectural and stylistic elements of the structure, whether they are of the Doric, Iconic, or Corinthian order; Roman Colonial, or Baroque in style. To realize the treasure Stonehill has in Professor Sheckler, I guess you would need to take one of her classes, an experience I recommend to all students.

 

And so with deep pride we today recognize Professor Allyson Sheckler for exemplifying Stonehill’s commitment to academic excellence.

 

Given this twenty eighth day of August,

Two thousand and seven.

 

 

Rev. Mark T. Cregan, C.S.C.

President