Dr. Erika Loic Receives University Award for Inclusive Teaching and Mentoring
Congratulations to Dr. Erika Loic, who received the 2023–24 University Award for Inclusive Teaching and Mentoring! This award, administered by the Office of the Provost on the basis of student and alumni nominations, honors faculty who teach courses in which the learning environment is explicitly designed to be inclusive and equitable so that all students can flourish
In and out of the classroom, Dr. Loic works to help students develop their professional identities. She shares her own intellectual and professional challenges with students and discusses problem-solving, reframing difficulties as opportunities for learning. She meets regularly with undergraduate and graduate students to discuss how she can support them in their professional trajectories, and has been a member since 2021 of the department’s Placement Committee, which conducts practice interviews and job talks and reviews application materials for job-seeking students. Since 2022 she has hosted Writing Circle Fridays in the Rose Library, where students and faculty can come together to read and write collectively.
Dr. Loic believes inclusivity in teaching and mentorship also means minimizing barriers to access. In 2021, she received one of FSU Libraries’ Alternative Textbook Grants, designed to help instructors replace commercial course materials with zero-cost alternatives. She worked with librarians to select eBooks with unlimited user licenses and has designed all of her subsequent courses so that they require no financial investment from students. She also regularly design experiences around library visits, and has as a result witnessed significant improvements in students’ willingness to visit Special Collections independently.
One Art History graduate alumna wrote of Dr. Loic in her nomination letter,
“The immense value of having a mentor who understood me and made me feel safe was, and continues to be, indescribable. All that I achieved in my graduate career I owe to Erika, both in her radical support of my endeavors and in her constant reassurance of my abilities—even when I myself could not see them.”
University Teaching and Advising Awards nominations are made by individuals (students or faculty) in the late fall; if you would like to nominate an outstanding teacher or advisor, see the Provost’s website for details: https://provost.fsu.edu/faculty/awards/teaching-advising-information.
FSU President Richard McCullough presents the University Award for Inclusive Teaching and Mentoring to Dr. Erika Loic at an awards ceremony on April 23, 2024.