Announcing the 2015 Recipients of the President’s Awards for Distinguished Scholar-Teachers

September 25, 2015

Dear Members of the Georgetown Community:
 
It is with great pride that I share with you this year’s recipients of the President’s Awards for Distinguished Scholar-Teachers at Georgetown University.  These awards celebrate individuals who have made an extraordinary impact on our community through the integration of ambitious research and excellent student engagement.   It is my pleasure to announce this year’s awardees:
 
Derek Goldman, Ph.D.
Artistic Director of the Davis Performing Arts Center and Professor of Theater and Performance Studies
Department of Performing Arts
 
Christian Wolf, Ph.D.
Professor
Department of Chemistry
 
For the past three years, our community has sought to recognize outstanding commitments to our dual research and teaching mission through this award.  We believe that it is at the intersection of these endeavors—the formation of young people and unrestrained scholarly inquiry—that universities can make the most significant contributions to the world. 
 
Professor Goldman’s unparalleled vision, spirit of collaboration and dedication to our students has enriched our community in deep and lasting ways over the course of his time teaching and directing in the Department of Performing Arts.  Through his work and the partnerships he helped to create, he has demonstrated a deep and enthusiastic commitment to strengthening our global engagement through performing arts, most notably through the Laboratory for Global Performance and Politics, an effort he co-founded alongside former Ambassador and Georgetown Professor Cynthia Schneider.  This unique partnership between the School of Foreign Service and the Department of Performing Arts convenes global speakers, workshops and performances on our campus in an unprecedented effort to highlight performing arts as an avenue to build understanding in the face of global challenges. 
 
Professor Wolf, a devoted researcher and professor in our Department of Chemistry, has inspired his students and colleagues with his innovative scholarship and achievements since coming to Georgetown’s Department of Chemistry fifteen years ago.  An expert in Organic Chemistry, Professor Wolf has developed an impressive and broad research profile and a strong record of highly-influential scholarship across scientific fields.  Moreover, he has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to his students’ learning, at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, inspiring many to go on to make their own contributions in the field.  We are proud to recognize his accomplishments and impact with this award.
 
This year’s exceptional pool of nominations represented the great strength and diversity of talent that characterizes our University community. Our awardees emerged following a rigorous selection process in which a committee of fellow distinguished faculty members identified a small group of finalists.  I wish to thank all of you who submitted nominations in the spring.
 
I hope that you will all join me in congratulating the awardees and celebrating the many ways that they have enriched our community. I look forward to presenting these awards at the Fall Faculty Convocation in a few weeks.
 
You have my very best wishes.
 
 
Sincerely,
 
John J. DeGioia