Associate professor is praised for using an innovative approach to teaching and being a role model and mentor.
Susan Bindon, DNP, RN, NPD-BC, CNE, CNE-cl, FAAN, associate professor, associate dean for faculty development, and director of the Institute for Educators in the Department of Partnerships, Professional Education, and Practice at the University of Maryland School of Nursing, has received a University System of Maryland (USM) 2023 Regents’ Faculty Award.
The award is the highest honor presented by the board to exemplary faculty members. The USM Board of Regents honored 19 members at its institutions.
Bindon, who is also program director of the Teaching in Nursing and Health Professions Certificate, received USM’s Excellence in Teaching Award and was praised for being a mentor and role model.
“Dr. Bindon is highly regarded for her innovative approaches to teaching and her ability to coach and mentor both seasoned and novice faculty to improve student learning,” USM said in a news release announcing the awards. “She is considered a role model in her own right for excellence and innovative teaching.”
USM said the nursing faculty shortage is a key driver in the nation’s and Maryland’s nursing shortage.
“Dr. Bindon promotes a new nursing pedagogy with a critical focus on nurse engagement, professional development, and mentoring through teaching, scholarship, and service. By focusing on teaching, she helps expert or professional nurses become new or better nurse educators,” the news release said.
Bindon, who thanked Jane Kirschling, PhD, RN, FAAN, The Bill and Joanne Conway Dean of UMSON, for her support and vision, said she was honored to represent UMSON and the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB).
“Sharing my lifelong love of teaching and learning with students and faculty colleagues is a privilege. When UMB President Bruce E. Jarrell, MD, FACS, called with congratulations, I shared with him how fortunate we are to work in a setting that values and recognizes the tremendous teaching excellence on campus,” she said. “I am grateful to the many teachers and mentors I have had the opportunity to learn from throughout my career; they have inspired me to keep learning. My goal is to serve in that role for others as I work with current and future nurse educators. I encourage teachers to stay curious, be present, and try new ways to connect with learners.”
USM Chancellor Jay A. Perman, MD, and Board of Regents Chair Linda Gooden, MBA, will recognize the winners during the board’s meeting April 14 at Coppin State University. Each award carries a $2,000 prize provided by the institutions and the University System of Maryland Foundation.
“It’s a privilege each year to pay tribute to our outstanding faculty,” Perman said. “The impact of their teaching, their discovery, their scholarship, and service simply can’t be overstated. That our winners have distinguished themselves among tens of thousands of their faculty colleagues across the system makes this a rare honor.”