Across every semester, my student evaluations reflect a pattern of high engagement, inclusion, and clarity. Semester after semester, my scores remained consistently high—often well above the department and school averages. Students rated my teaching especially well in areas like clarity of instruction, respect for students, and course organization.

The scores offer one dimension of teaching effectiveness—but the written comments illustrate the kind of classroom environment I’ve built. Students consistently described my courses as structured yet flexible, challenging yet supportive. They noted how I make course material feel relevant and urgent—especially in classes centered on race, journalism, and media literacy.

Several themes show up repeatedly: my commitment to inclusive teaching, my use of real-world tools and examples, and my willingness to give meaningful, individualized feedback. Many students commented on feeling seen and heard in my classroom—some for the first time in their college experience. Others emphasized how my assignments encouraged them to think critically and tell stories that mattered to them.

I teach this way because I believe the classroom is not neutral. Every lesson, every example, every silence communicates something. If I’m not intentional about who is centered and what knowledge is validated, I risk replicating the same exclusions that many of my students already face outside the classroom. My pedagogy is rooted in the belief that students are not just recipients of knowledge, but holders of it. They come into the room with histories, questions, and experiences that deserve to be part of the academic conversation.

This approach is especially important in courses about race, media, and journalism—subjects where students’ lived experiences often intersect with the content in deeply personal ways. For some, these courses are the first time they’ve seen their communities discussed with nuance. For others, the material challenges beliefs they hadn’t previously questioned. Either way, trust matters. And I build that trust through transparency, structured flexibility, and a commitment to treating students like people, not just names on a roster.

Because of this, I’ve seen clear improvements in student work and engagement. Students take creative risks, apply course concepts to real-world issues, and ask sharper questions. I’ve watched them grow in confidence, refine their analysis, and lead group projects with empathy and initiative. I’ve seen final assignments that grapple seriously with systemic issues, and class discussions where students teach each other as much as I do.

I see it beyond the classroom too—in office hours and emails, in questions about turning projects into publishable stories, and in students who tell me they finally feel like they belong in a media program. They leave my courses more confident in their voice and more critical of the systems they’ll navigate as media professionals.

That’s why I value these evaluations—not just for the high scores, but for what they say about how students experienced learning in my classroom. They tell me the structure is working. The care is felt. And the content is landing in ways that last.