The Faculty Senate awarded its 2023 Outstanding Teaching Award for Graduate Teaching, to Tatiana Perrino, professor of clinical and associate dean for diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging for the School of Nursing and Health Studies; and associate provost for faculty development.
“Tatiana is ahead of the curve when it comes to teaching excellence,” said Guillermo “Willy” Prado, vice provost for faculty affairs; dean of the Graduate School; and professor of nursing and health studies, public health sciences, and psychology. “She implemented innovative pedagogical approaches, such as ‘flipped classrooms’ and problem-based learning, when most faculty were only speaking of those practices.”
While previously teaching at the Miller School of Medicine’s Department of Public Health Sciences, Perrino developed the curriculum and syllabi for six courses covering diverse areas of prevention science and public health. Students consistently evaluated those courses as “exceptional” with scores from 4.5 to 5 on a 1-to-5-point Likert scale.
Outside of the classroom, Perrino has supervised more than 50 students completing their fieldwork and independent projects. “Perrino has been an outstanding mentor to public health graduate students,” said Prado, “in addition to advising doctoral students, many of whom have published peer-reviewed articles before and after graduation.”
Passionate about mentorship and student development, Perrino is keen on building students’ skills in critical thinking, effective communication, and evidence-based knowledge application through active learning, service learning, and case-based approaches to education.
“I love hearing from students after they graduate,” said Perrino. “Their work is compelling, and they are making a difference in the world through teaching, research, and practice. Their passion and dedication inspire me."
Perrino advises her colleagues and students to work as part of inter-disciplinary and community-involved teams to amplify the learning and meaning behind their scholarship. “Working as a team helps to develop more innovative ideas, better programs, and stronger research. It also builds a stronger sense of community, which is especially important today,” explained Perrino.
Presented by the University’s Faculty Senate, the Outstanding Teaching Award for Graduate Teaching recognizes individuals who have demonstrated excellence in teaching at the University for at least a decade.
The 2022–23 Faculty Senate Awards Ceremony will be held in person tonight, Tuesday, April 11, at 5 p.m. Learn more about the awards ceremony.
This profile is part of a 2022–23 Faculty Senate Awards series recognizing all awardees.
