Evans Named SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor

Beverly J. Evans, professor of French and Western Humanities in Geneseo’s Department of Languages and Literatures, is among the latest cohort of 14 faculty members the State University of New York Board of Trustees has named to a distinguished professorship.

The board appointed Evans as one of only two Distinguished Teaching Professors this year. The distinguished rank recognizes and honors mastery of teaching. Candidates must have demonstrated consistently superior mastery of teaching, outstanding service to students, and commitment to their ongoing intellectual growth, and adherence to rigorous academic standards and requirements.

“The Board is honored to bestow these 14 exceptional academics, who come highly recommended by their peers and presidents, with SUNY’s most revered ranking of distinction,” said SUNY Board Chairman H. Carl McCall. “Their dedication to the students, faculty, and staff at their individual campuses as well as to advancing research and sharing knowledge within their fields is laudable. Congratulations to all honorees.”

The board noted that Evans has consistently demonstrated exceptional teaching over her 33-year career at Geneseo and that her dedication to mentorship has resulted in numerous students presenting their research at local and regional conferences. 

“The individuals joining SUNY’s distinguished faculty exude academic excellence, commit themselves to being exemplary professionals inside and outside of the classroom, and relentlessly work to build on SUNY’s prominence as a national leader in education and service,” said SUNY Chancellor Kristina Johnson. “Their accomplishments range from producing groundbreaking research to helping students find their passion for learning, and ultimately, to succeeding in their careers. Thank you to all of today’s honorees for their service to SUNY and congratulations.”

Evans has been on the Geneseo faculty since 1985. She received the Geneseo GOLD Award for Outstanding Student Organization Advisor in 2003 and the President’s Award for Excellence in Academic Advising in 2014. For well over a decade, Evans has been the faculty liaison to Geneseo’s study abroad program at the Université Paul-Valéry, Montpellier 3 in France, and the SUNY program in Paris at the Sorbonne. Her contributions to furthering Geneseo’s global awareness mission include creating, teaching, and serving as the administrator of the Western Humanities II in Paris summer program. Since 2011, Evans has been the Executive Director of Pi Delta Phi, the National French Honor Society.

Evans has written over a half dozen articles on medieval French literature and music. She is currently Editor of Encomia, the publication of the International Courtly Literature Society. In the past several years, Evans has been researching the literature and music of the Great War period. Her work was supported in part by a Roemer Summer Faculty Fellowship in 2014. She has presented at World War I conferences in Canada, England, and Scotland. This scholarship has informed her teaching in the form of a French/Comparative Literature course and the Edgar Fellows course, “The Great War in Literature and the Arts.”

“Professor Evans’ appointment as Distinguished Teaching Professor is a tremendous honor that is well-earned,” said SUNY Geneseo President Denise A. Battles. “Beverly is a remarkable teacher who is active in and outside of the classroom. Her enthusiasm for teaching and research makes her a highly effective professor and mentor, and we are fortunate to have an educator of her caliber at Geneseo.”

Evans is among 55 Geneseo faculty members who have received the rank since 1973.

Since the program’s inception in 1963, SUNY has appointed 1,130 faculty to the distinguished ranks, as follows, including these most recent appointments: 408 Distinguished Professorships; 327 Distinguished Service Professorships; 388 Distinguished Teaching Professorships; and 7 Distinguished Librarian Professorships. More information about SUNY’s faculty award program is available online.