CWU's Martin Named Top Professor In Washington State

November 13, 2003

ELLENSBURG, Wash.-- "Probably my greatest strengths as a teacher are my commitment to lifelong learning, my willingness to try new things and the spirit with which I approach the work." So says Dr. Terry Martin, Central Washington University English professor.

For those reasons along with her "extraordinary dedication to teaching, commitment to students and innovative teaching methods," Martin has been named the 2003 Washington state Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE).

She was recognized today (Thursday, Nov. 13) during an awards luncheon at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., and at a Congressional reception on Capitol Hill. With 25 years' teaching experience, Martin, 46, has been in education for more than half of her life. After graduating from Western Washington University in 1979, she taught in Bellevue and La Center schools. She joined the Central faculty in 1986, after earning her Ph.D. in English education from the University of Oregon. Martin was named the university's Distinguished Teaching Professor in 2000 and received the CWU Presidential Award for Leadership in 2002.

In nominating her for the Professor of the Year award, Central President Jerilyn S. McIntyre, who called Martin the "consummate teacher-scholar-mentor," noted, "She has been a leader in moving our institution from one in which lecture is the primary pedagogical technique to one in which students, working cooperatively and in authentic settings, discover their own knowledge and understanding of important topics."

CWU English faculty colleague Paulus Pimomo echoes those sentiments, labeling Martin, "the teacher's teacher."

"Like many of us in the profession, Dr. Martin is familiar with and works hard to meet the demands of the fast evolving curricula and student body," Pimomo pointed out. "But unlike most of us, she has gone on to become a leader in meeting those demands."

Current and former students also are quick to credit Martin as an exemplary teacher and mentor.

"Dr. Martin has an innate ability to motivate students," Jessica Carter, a 1995 CWU graduate, says. "She causes students to dig deeper, think at higher levels, reach into depths of creativity they didn't know existed, and produce work at a quality they didn't know they were capable of. I have heard students say more than once, 'I want to be Dr. Martin,' and there is no hint of jest in that statement."

Martin says she enjoys working at Central because "teaching is the very heart of its mission. CWU offers me the opportunity to teach an interesting mix of general education, major and graduate classes. I enjoy the challenges inherent in attempting to address the diverse interests, needs and abilities of a wide range of students."

Patsy Callaghan, CWU English department chair, says: "I am not aware of another professor whose student evaluation results can compare with Dr. Martin's, yet her standards and expectations are some of the most challenging in the department, contradicting a general assumption that asking students to work hard will often elicit critical comments and negative responses."

About eight years ago, Martin, a native of Spokane who now lives in Yakima, began branching out from publishing scholarly and academic articles to also writing personal essays and poems. During the past several years, her creative writing has appeared in numerous literary journals and anthologies. Blue Begonia Press, as part of its Working Signs Series, published her first book of poetry, "Wishboats," in 2000.

Now, she says her creative writing has become a vital part of her teaching.

"I'm a learner; I try things that scare me," Martin points out. "Taking these risks helps me remember there's dignity in being a beginner."

That risk-taking spirit has also helped make her the very best Washington state has to offer its students in the collegiate classroom.