Bethel College honored Becky Bartell, assistant professor of nursing and director of the Department of Nursing, for teaching excellence at the 132nd commencement on May 18.
The Ralph P. Schrag Distinguished Teaching Award is presented at commencement most years to recognize a Bethel faculty member who has made an outstanding contribution to teaching.
Dr. Robert Milliman, Bethel vice president for academic affairs and dean of faculty, presented the award.
In his citation, Milliman said, “Professor Bartell is an outstanding teacher. She provides a favorable context for learning with a positive, comfortable, calm and flexible, yet assertive demeanor, to which students respond well.”
Bartell teaching exhibits “ample evidence of her mastery of course content and pedagogical strategies,” he added.
The Schrag Award are based in part on student course evaluations. Milliman continued, “Professor Bartell’s students affirm those observation with their own positive perspectives on her exemplary classroom instruction.”
One student wrote, ““Professor Bartell … cares about us as people and not just students. She cares about how we are mentally and always gives us the extra check-ins on the days we need it most.”
Another added, “Professor Bartell is an amazing teacher who is so easy to get along with in class. She is a great part of the nursing program and I am so glad she is my professor and adviser.”
Bartell’s teaching colleagues are equally positive. “Becky has been a tremendous asset in the Social Science division,” one noted. “She represents the interests of the nursing department clearly and well, but more importantly is able to balance those interests with thinking about the college as a whole. Her insight and experience make the entire division function better.”
Milliman also cited Bartell’s “[unquestioned] dedication to Bethel College and the success of our students and the nursing department.
“This dedication is evident when looking at the accomplishments of that department. Bethel’s nursing program was the only one in Kansas that achieved a 100% NCLEX first-time pass rate for two [consecutive] years, and currently is proud to hold the highest three-year average for first-time pass rate in the state of Kansas with a pass rate of 97.62%.
“This can be attributed to the hard work of the nursing department under Becky’s leadership and commitment to her students’ triumphs. Through all of this, she also recently orchestrated a near-perfect accreditation visit for the nursing department.”
Bartell graduated from Bethel College in 2002 with a bachelor of science in nursing, and earned her master of science in nursing education from Fort Hays State University.
She is currently pursuing a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree through Eastern Mennonite University, Harrisonburg, Va.
Bethel is a four-year liberal arts college founded in 1887 and is the oldest Mennonite college in North America. Bethel was the first Kansas college or university to be named a Truth, Community Healing and Transformation (TCHT) Campus Center, in 2021. For more information, see http://www.bethelks.edu
