A University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point English faculty member has been awarded $3,900 from the Wisconsin Teaching Fellows Program.

Mary Bowman, assistant professor of English, is among 15 peers in the UW System awarded fellowships for 2002-2003.

The UW System�s Office of Professional and Instructional Development (OPID) administers the fellowship program, providing grants to faculty nominated by their institutions and in their first six years of teaching. UWSP provides matching funds through the Office of Academic Affairs. Bowman came to UWSP in 1998 after a year spent as a visiting professor at Shenandoah University, Winchester, Va., and two years at Pikeville College, Pikeville, Ky.

The chosen fellows use the grants for a yearlong opportunity to think creatively about ways to improve faculty instruction and student learning, while working cooperatively with colleagues both within and outside their disciplines. As fellows, the faculty members will attend OPID�s Faculty College and Summer Institute, both held during June. They also will meet twice during the year in conjunction with other OPID-sponsored events.

During her fellowship year, Bowman hopes to address two related problems faced by students in literature classes, the need for active involvement with the material and the fact that many are not equipped with the knowledge of culture and literature to interpret the material. She hopes to develop additional techniques to facilitate students� out-of-class encounters with a text. She predicts the tools will include a combination of materials and activities, making use of electronic resources on the Internet and using technology in the classroom.

A specialist in Renaissance literature, Bowman holds degrees from Duke University and the College of William and Mary. She was nominated by the English Department for the University Scholar Award in 2000.

She has two articles forthcoming in professional journals, and has presented and chaired sessions at Midwest Modern Language Association conventions.

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