The Society for the Teaching of Psychology (STP) recently awarded SUNY Broome Psychology Professor William S. Altman with the Wayne Weiten Teaching Excellence Award, for faculty members teaching at the two-year college level. Teaching award recipients were honored at STP’s 39th anniversary Conference on Teaching in Phoenix, Arizona, and received a plaque and a $1,500 prize.
Professor Altman earned his bachelor’s in history at the University of Pennsylvania, and his MPS in communication arts and MS and PhD in educational psychology from Cornell University.
In choosing Dr. Altman for the award, STP notes that he creates “an environment conducive to learning” and uses evidence-based practices to encourage student participation, such as having them design and implement their own research studies. He also provides opportunities beyond the classroom for students to become involved in the field of psychology, such as working with a student on a research project that she later presented at professional conferences and submitted for publication.
Dr. Altman also provides students a safe environment in which they can fail at an assignment and learn from that failure without jeopardizing their grade. “This type of environment encourages students to learn how to cope with failing so that when they fail in the real world, they know how to respond and act,” STP notes in an article on Altman.
Dr. Altman also has been involved with curriculum development for more than 25 years, has more than 70 publications and presentations at local and national conferences, and a history of editorial service to publications in the field.
Congratulations, Dr. Altman, on an award well-earned!
