2007 Excellence in Teaching Award

The UCEA Excellence in Teaching Award is presented to individuals who have provided outstanding teaching, course development, mentoring of students, and service to continuing education. This award recognizes those who have made significant contributions to credit or noncredit programs and who have provided inspirational teaching to continuing education students.

Spencer M. Di Scala

University of Massachusetts Boston

Spencer M. Di Scala History Professor Spencer Di Scala is an outstanding scholar at the University of Massachusetts Boston, with an impressive record of publications, presentations, academic honors, and service to the University and the community. He also is an ardent supporter of and participant in UMass Boston's Division of Corporate, Continuing and Distance Education (CCDE), teaching extremely popular courses in the summer school, winter session, and weekend college, as well as online.

"Professor Di Scala has been a strong and welcome supporter of the online efforts of Corporate, Continuing and Distance Education, both as an instructor and as Chair of the History department," observes Dirk Messelaar, Dean of CCDE. "When he learned of the opportunity to teach online, he immediately saw the possibilities for innovation and experimentation made possible by the technologies."

Di Scala began teaching online history courses in the fall of 2003, and has developed five courses for online delivery, including the first graduate course in the history master's degree program. In addition to teaching courses in the summer, fall and spring semesters, he also has taught a course in Italy during the three-week January semester format during the past few years.

"It can be challenging to attract tenured full professors from social sciences/liberal arts to online teaching," says David Gray, CEO of UMassOnline. "That Professor Di Scala joined us so readily in the provision of European history courses and did so with the perspective of creating effective learning experiences for undergraduate students is truly exemplary."

He adds: "UMassOnline students are busy working professionals who exemplify adult working students-they want courses that are relevant and worthy of their time and energy. That Professor Di Scala's courses are fully enrolled and that many of his students are 'repeat customers' is fine testimony to the quality of the learning experience he provides."

"I have learned more about history from Professor Di Scala than any other professor that I have encountered," says graduate history student Matthew Campbell, who has taken five courses taught by Di Scala during the past two years, including three online.

Di Scala began his teaching career at the University of Kentucky in the late 1960s. He has been teaching at UMass Boston since 1970 and has been a full professor since 1986. He earned his Ph.D. and M.A. in history from Columbia University and holds a B.A. in the same from Queens College, CUNY.