CONWAY, Ark. (Nov. 8, 2006) – Stella M. Capek of Conway, a sociology professor at Hendrix College, is the recipient of the 2005-06 Exemplary Teacher Award from the United Methodist Church General Board of Higher Education and Ministry (GBHEM).
Capek, a member of the Hendrix faculty since 1986, received the award for exemplifying excellence in teaching; civility and concern for students and colleagues; commitment to value-centered education; and service to students, the institution, and the community. In addition to a certificate of appreciation, she was presented a $500 cash award.
Capek received a BA degree from Boston University in 1975 and an MA degree in 1981 and a Ph.D. in 1985 in sociology from the University of Texas at Austin. She teaches courses on environmental sociology, social change/social movements, medical sociology, food, culture, and nature, urban/community sociology, images of the city, gender and family in a cross-cultural perspective and sociological theory. She has also team-taught student-faculty travel seminars in Costa Rica and in the Southwest. She currently is chair of the Environment and Technology Section of the American Sociological Association.
She is especially interested in interdisciplinary environmental studies and social justice issues. She has published articles on environmental justice, tenants` rights and housing issues, urban/community dynamics, grassroots movements and women's health issues. She has co-authored two books, “Community Versus Commodity: Tenants and the American City” in 1992 and “Come Lovely and Soothing Death: The Right To Die Movement in the United States” in 1999.
Hendrix, founded in 1876, is a selective, residential, undergraduate liberal arts college that emphasizes experiential learning in a demanding yet supportive environment. Hendrix has been affiliated with the United Methodist Church since 1884. For more information, visit www.hendrix.edu.
- 30 -
Media contact: Judy Williams, 501/450-1462, williamsj@hendrix.edu