Lauded for making a transformational impact on more than 2,500 students through a wide range of courses in the College of Science & Engineering, Mathew Crawford, PhD, instructor in the Pre-Health Professions Institute, was honored with the 2025 Maryrose and Dan Short Award for Teaching Excellence. The award confers $9,000, with $1,000 to be used for professional development.
Crawford’s innovative teaching methods emphasize experiential learning, interdisciplinary integration and professional development. In addition to teaching, he leads curriculum development and serves as an academic advisor and consummate mentor.
“Students rave about both the content of his courses and the classroom environment he creates,” states a colleague in a nomination letter.
He mentored one-third of all applicants to professional school (more than 200 over the last four years), reviewing and revising application materials, writing letters of evaluation, and advising them through the year-long application process.
He also serves as a faculty mentor to two student organizations, directs honors theses, and mentors students pursuing scholarly theses for a professional school.
A student’s nomination letter captures the impact Crawford has had: “Any time I listen to a lecture or participate in a discussion, I am amazed at his ability to sit in the complexity and ambiguity of things with such humility, not assuming he knows everything, but rather inviting others into dialogue and discussion so that everyone can learn and grow from their shared experience.”
Nominations for the award come from all TCU colleges and schools. Deans confer and vote on their top candidates for final selection. The nominees for 2025 were:
- Edgar Campos, Assistant Professor of Sociology, AddRan College of Liberal Arts
- Mathew Crawford, Instructor of Pre-Health, College of Science & Engineering
- Shelley Ford, Assistant Professor of Professional Practice in Nursing, Harris College of Nursing & Health Sciences
- Zachary Frohlich, Instructor II in Communication Studies and Director of Communicating Effectively, Bob Schieffer College of Communication
- Jennifer Grennan, Instructor II in Accounting, Neeley School of Business
- Pablo Montes, Assistant Professor of Curriculum Studies, College of Education
- Rima Shrestha, Instructor of Fashion Merchandising, College of Fine Arts
- Sarah Vartabedian, Assistant Professor of Professional Practice, John V. Roach Honors College