2024 Dean's Award for Excellence in Adjunct Teaching awarded to Nicole Gilmore

The 2024 Dean’s Award for Excellence in Adjunct Teaching was awarded to Nicole Gilmore. As an adjunct professor, Gilmore teaches undergraduate courses in topics such as interviewing skills and community and organizational dynamics, and at the MSW level, she teaches courses focused on human rights and social justice, trauma-informed care, and social work practice.

The Dean’s Award for Excellence in Adjunct Teaching was created to demonstrate our appreciation of our adjunct faculty members’ immense contributions to the School’s teaching mission. Because many of our adjunct faculty continue to work in agencies and private practices, students benefit from their ability to link our curriculum and coursework to the issues and concerns they face daily in practice settings.

Gilmore’s nomination for this award received robust support from KUSSW students, staff and faculty. Gilmore has an extraordinary record of providing high-quality teaching across the curriculum, supporting students at Pittsburg State University and through Jayhawk Global. Gilmore stands out in her commitment to enriching students’ educational experiences by bringing in guest speakers, incorporating relevant practice examples, and employing innovative pedagogical practices. As one colleague wrote: “Nicole is a true champion for the KU School of Social Welfare and the success of our students in the social work profession.” As one student wrote, “This professor is so kind and inviting that her classes don’t feel like schoolwork. She teaches with so much passion it pulls you in!” Another student summarized their experience by sharing, “Although she is an expert, she facilitates the class as though each person is an expert as well, welcoming knowledge and input. She has been fantastic to work with and as a student, I feel lucky to have her.”