Columbus State University honored more than 100 of its outstanding students and faculty at its annual Scholastic Honors Convocation on April 23.

This year’s Educator of the Year award recipient is Dr. Cameron Williams, an assistant professor of sociology in the Department of Criminal Justice and Sociology. Williams teaches a range of classes, including Introduction to Sociology, Urban Sociology, Rural Sociology, and Social Stratification and Inequality. Wiliams has more than 10 years of higher education teaching experience, which includes prior appointments at Northern Kentucky University and Loyola University Chicago. He has worked at CSU since August 2020 and was recently approved to conduct a summer research program.

The Educator of the Year Award is presented by the Student Government Association to recognize and promote teaching excellence among the faculty of the university. Faculty are nominated by students and evaluated on the basis of knowledge, consistency, dependability and creativity. Williams will receive the Educator of the Year Medallion, and a monetary award of $1,500. 

This year’s Faculty Cup honoree is Jessica DeMarco-Jacobson—current editor-in-chief of The Uproar, CSU’s student newspaper, as well as a published author. DeMarco-Jacobson is a senior pursuing a literature degree. She has been previously honored as a Student of Excellence by the English department and was awarded the Scholarly Activities in Humanities Award by the Honors College.

The Faculty Cup is the highest award presented to a Columbus State University student each year and signifies superior academic achievement, participation in university organizations, leadership, service to others and a potential for future achievements. Nominations are made by the faculty, and the winner is selected by CSU’s Scholastic Honors Committee. DeMarco-Jacobson will receive the Faculty Cup and a monetary award of $1,000.

During the convocation, held virtually due to ongoing public health caution, many more students received Student of Excellence awards. The full list of honorees can be found at aa.columbusstate.edu/scholastic-honors/.