David Harper

Assistant Professor of English [NOMINATION FOR BOUNDS TEACHING AWARD]

Teachers lead. Leaders serve. Servants engage their community. Page 1

MEMO
Date: 25 November 2013
To: Kathryn Barbour, Vice President for Academic Services
Heather Westerfield, Faculty Evaluation and Policy Committee Chair
From: John Carl Haas, Associate Professor of History
Re: Nomination for the Bounds Award

I am writing to nominate Assistant Professor David Harper for the Distinguished Teaching Chair Award for 2014.
David is one of the best teachers with whom I have worked in my 22 years in higher education. In terms of preparation,
he is diligent, organized, and thoughtful in creating terrific learning experiences for his students. He constantly
encourages them to go beyond where they are comfortable to experience the new, and in turn, learn from those
experiences. David is constantly modifying what he does to make improvements for our students. Within the classroom,
he is relaxed, disarming, and approachable while still maintaining high standards. Professor Harper is what many of us
strive to be: a natural teacher.
I was fortunate to see all of this first-hand when I team taught the IDC 201 course with David over a two-semester run. I
can think of no one more deserving of the Bounds Award than David Harper.
Please let me know if there anything else I can do to further his nomination for this important award.