Murfreesboro, TN - Middle Tennessee State University celebrated academic excellence at its annual Fall Faculty and Staff Meeting on August 21, 2025, where Honors College Associate Dean Philip E. Phillips received the university’s highest faculty honor—the 2025 Career Achievement Award.

Presented by MTSU President Sidney A. McPhee and MTSU Foundation President Brian F. Kidd, the award recognized Phillips’ decades-long dedication to education, mentorship, and service. “Except for being recognized by students, there’s no greater honor for a professor than to be recognized in this way by his peers,” Phillips said.

Phillips began his career in 1992 and joined MTSU in 1999. He’s a three-time recipient of the Distinguished Research Award and has chaired nearly half of all honors thesis committees. His influence extends beyond campus, having led MTSU’s Academic Master Plan Committee and served nationally with Phi Kappa Phi, where he is now president-elect.

Also honored were 17 other faculty and staff for outstanding contributions in teaching, research, and service. Five individuals received the President’s Silver Column Awards, including Jeff Gibson and Meredith Kerr from the College of Liberal Arts.

Additional accolades included Outstanding Teaching Awards for professors across disciplines, and recognition for public service, early career research, and creative activity. The university also celebrated 26 new faculty emeriti and 60 newly promoted or tenured faculty.

Phillips credited his students, mentors, and colleagues for shaping his journey. “I try to give my students the same encouragement and attention my best professors gave to me,” he said, reflecting the spirit of collaboration and dedication that defines his legacy at MTSU.

Honored

• Jeff Gibson, professor and associate dean of the College of Liberal Arts
• Meredith Kerr, development director in the College of Liberal Arts
• Gina Poff, director of New Student and Family Programs
• Hanna Terletska, associate professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy
• Brenda Wunder, manager of Facilities Services

Faculty service awards:

•  Kate Goodwin, associate professor, Department of Theatre and Dance
• Samuel Haruna, associate professor, School of Agriculture
• C. Rebecca Oldham, assistant professor, Human Development and Family Science program
• Ashley Valanzola, assistant professor, Department of History, was honored with Outstanding Teaching in True Blue Core

 Foundation Award recipients are:

• Outstanding Public Service Award — Jessica Arbour, assistant professor, Department of Biology
• Outstanding Public Service Award — Emily Baran, professor, Department of History
• Outstanding Public Service Award — Maria Edlin King, director of the Center for Financial Literacy
• Distinguished Early Career Research Award — Gaia Rancati, assistant professor, Department of Marketing and director of the Neuromarketing and AI Lab
• Distinguished Early Career Research Award — Souvik Banerjee, assistant professor, Department of Chemistry
• Distinguished Senior Research Award — Gregory T. Rushton, professor, Department of Chemistry and director of the Tennessee STEM Education Center
• Distinguished Early Career Creative Activity Award — Joyce Anne Finch, assistant professor, School of Nursing
• Distinguished Senior Career Creative Activity Award — Fred Arroyo, associate professor, Department of English