Emily Mehle wins UB Graduate School’s 2023 Excellence in Teaching Award

As a graduate student, Emily has been a teaching assistant for several courses – BIO 200 (Evolutionary Biology), BIO 313 (Physiology Lab), BIO 315 (Fundamentals of Biochemistry Lab), and BIO 370 (Developmental Biology). She is also actively involved in mentoring the rotation students in the Ferkey Lab.

Commenting on her mentorship and advisement skills, Dr. Ferkey mentions, “Emily’s enthusiasm for teaching and mentoring are truly in line with the Teaching Award for Graduate Teaching Assistants. She is always the first in the lab to volunteer to mentor a new student in the lab, and she has a strong desire to mentor undergraduates and to expand opportunities for learning how to perform hypothesis-driven research.” As per Dr. Sehgal, “Emily’s passion for teaching, and willingness to help her students stands out the most. She delivers materials with most professionalism, and is excellent at communicating with her students.”

In her personal statement, Emily mentions, “Inclusivity is something important to have as an individual, but it especially matters as a teacher. While working with a diverse set of students containing varying skills, I want to ensure that everyone gets the same opportunity to succeed in the class. In some cases, this includes working with some students more than others.” This statement resonates UB’s mission regarding inclusivity and diversity, and reflects Emily’s ability to incorporate it into her teaching.