Dr. Begoña Caballero-García, assistant professor of Spanish Studies, is Wofford College’s 2023 SCICU Excellence In Teaching award recipient. She holds a Ph.D. in Literatures, Languages, and Cultures of the Iberian Peninsula and the Americas from The University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. She earned Master of Arts in Spanish and Latin American Culture from Western Michigan University (Kalamazoo, Mich.), and a Bachelor of Arts in English Philology from University of Extremadura, Spain.

In her 16 years as a member of the Wofford faculty, Caballero-García’s course load has included Theater in Spain and Latin America, Cultures of Spain and Latin America, Oral and Cultural Competency in Spanish, and different Spanish language courses.

Serving as Wofford’s first dean of Diversity and Inclusion from 2018 until 2020 evidences Caballero-García’s two main passions – being an educator and serving as a social justice advocate. She combines these two core values in her research that includes social justice education, diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), her teaching, and her life as a volunteer with many different organizations. She was recognized with the Wofford College Currie B. Spivey Award for exemplary volunteerism in 2016.

Caballero-García’s research on social justice education and DEI in the classroom has been published in peer review journals, such as Transformations: The Journal of Inclusive Scholarship and Pedagogy, and in Dimension‘s special issue on social justice in language learning. Caballero-García has been invited as a guest speaker in Spanish and English at multiple venues.

Building community, a sense of belonging, equity, and trust happen inside and outside Caballero-García’s classes. From cooking and dancing in Spanish with students, to visiting rural places in Peru, Vietnam, Cambodia and Cuba, to speaking about poverty with the local congressman, Caballero-García and her students reflect on cultural differences and try to make our world a better place.

Dr. Marcus L. Amos, assistant professor of sport management, is the 2023 SCICU Excellence In Teaching award recipient for Voorhees University. He holds a doctorate in kinesiology and sport studies with a concentration in sport management from the University of Tennessee, dual master’s degrees in rehabilitation counseling from South Carolina State University and sport management from Louisiana State University, and two bachelor’s degrees — one in physical education from Saint Augustine’s University (Raleigh, N.C.), and the second in therapeutic recreation from Southern University (Baton Rouge, La.).

In 2015 Amos joined the faculty of Voorhees University and serves as the faculty athletic representative while teaching courses in Sports Marketing and Promotions, Sport Event Planning, Introduction to Sport Management, Role of Sport in Society, Sport Management Internship, Legal Issues in Sports, and Ethics in Sport Management. He has established numerous partnerships with universities and organizations nationwide to provide students with experiential learning opportunities such as internships and job shadowing.

Beyond the classroom, Amos is a certified life skills facilitator and has spent over 20 years working within sports and social services and integrating aspects of life-skill development in athletics. As a registered NCAA health and safety speaker, he has presented at local, state, and international conferences. Recognized as a thought leader, he has provided expert media consultation for HBO Real Sports, ESPN Outside the Lines, ESPN Radio/ESPN News, 60 Minutes, 20/20, L.A. Times, and ABC News. Whether teaching in the classroom or the community, Dr. Amos has touched the lives of students and athletes at all levels.

Spartanburg Methodist College’s 2023 SCICU Excellence In Teaching award recipient is Dr. Dalicia Raymond, professor of English. She holds a Ph.D. in Medieval Literature from the University of New Mexico, and Master of Arts and Bachelor of Arts in English, both from Oregon State University (Corvallis, Ore.). Raymond’s research focuses on high and late medieval literature, medieval magic, alterity/difference, representations of women, and medievalism, particularly in popular youth and children’s literature and popular culture.

Raymond demonstrates her unwavering commitment to Spartanburg Methodist students through inventive hands-on activities in the classroom, such as teaching students to make chain mail and having them create manuscript illuminations with gold lettering. In 2022, the Southeastern Medieval Association gave Raymond the Lorraine Kochanske Stock Award to assist in hosting an undergraduate intercollegiate Medieval/Renaissance conference at SMC. Raymond’s leadership outside the classroom includes serving as the faculty representative to the Board of Trustees, chairing the Academic Advisement, Testing and Placement, and Assessment Committee, and acting as faculty advisor to Sigma Kappa Delta, the two-year English Honor Society.

Dr. Kelly Neil and Dr. Bethany Perkins, both English professors at Spartanburg Methodist, say this about Raymond’s impact with students: “We can’t overstate how highly we think of Dalicia as a teacher and believe SMC is very fortunate to have a professor as enthusiastic and knowledgeable as she is. Raymond exemplifies everything that makes Spartanburg Methodist College a community where students are put first.”

Dr. Michael Tapper, professor of religion and chair of the School of Religion and Humanities, is the 2023 SCICU Excellence In Teaching award recipient for Southern Wesleyan University. He holds a Ph.D. and an Master of Arts in Theology, both from Saint Paul University (Ottawa, Ontario), and earned a master of divinity from Tyndale Seminary (Toronto, Ontario) and a Bachelor of Arts in Religion from Kingswood University (Sussex, New Brunswick).

Tapper has served the Wesleyan Church for 25 years, and he draws on his experience as a researcher, author, speaker, and ordained minister to equip students to serve God and His Church. Prior to joining the SWU faculty in 2017, Tapper ministered in Canadian churches as lead pastor, connections pastor, and youth pastor, and served as an adjunct professor at Kingswood University and Crandall University in New Brunswick, Canada. He also worked with faith-based organizations to help people with developmental disabilities accomplish their goals and nurture communities where everybody belongs.

Tapper continues to pursue research related to Trinitarian concepts and contemporary worship music’s influence on theological understandings. His works have been published in Worship Leader Magazine, Christianity Today, the Wesleyan Church website, and other related media.

Throughout his life, Tapper has sought to make meaningful connections with other people. He is a strong and authentic leader, who moves with humility and conviction. Quick to encourage others toward their own potential and not afraid to “roll up his sleeves” and “make something happen,” Tapper brings an infectious tenacity to SWU’s campus.

Dr. Daniel Benjamin Bailey, an associate professor of political science and the director of public health studies, is Presbyterian College’s 2023 SCICU Excellence in Teaching award winner. He received his Ph.D. in political science from Texas Tech University (Lubbock, Tx.) in 2017, a Master of Arts in political science from Northeastern Illinois University (Chicago) in 2011, and a Bachelor of Arts in German from Texas Tech University in 2003. Bailey’s dissertation examined the political, economic, and social factors that influence groundwater conservation policy on the Great Plains of the United States.

Bailey joined the Presbyterian College faculty in the fall of 2018. At PC he teaches courses in the areas of state and local politics, public policy and administration, methodology and analysis, and public health. Bailey’s research focuses primarily on the intersection of local sustainability policy, public health, land use, and politics. His work has been published in the Review of Policy Research, the Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, Political Behavior, The Social Science Journal, and others.

Getting students out of the traditional classroom and engaging with the local Clinton community in various projects are among Bailey’s passions. Bailey has collaborated with PC President Matt vandenBerg in teaching the Service Entrepreneurship in Action class. Recognizing that the success of PC and the City of Clinton are intertwined, Bailey, vandenBerg, and students are working on a service/social entrepreneurship incubator in downtown Clinton. Redevelopment of area public parks is also a goal.

Outside the classroom Bailey is Presbyterian’s S.C. Student Legislature faculty advisor and he serves on the Faculty Scholarship Committee and Honor Council. Bailey’s community involvement includes serving as the chair of the Laurens County Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse since 2021.