JONESBORO, Ark. (9/24/21) – Kerri Bennett, an English instructor at Arkansas State University, was announced this week as a finalist for the Sun Belt Conference Faculty Member of the Year Award.
 
The annual award recognizes a faculty member from each Sun Belt institution who has a passion for teaching, engaging and inspiring students, while also separating themselves from their peers outside of the classroom by regularly supporting and displaying enthusiasm for the athletics department.
 
"I am honored to have been nominated as A-State's Sun Belt Conference Faculty of the Year, and I still can't quite believe that I was also named a finalist for the SBC as a whole," said Bennett. "I come from a family who loves and supports our local athletic programs, and I am proud to support the Red Wolves through helping them become stronger, more confident writers and emerging scholars who are not only equipped for the rigors of upper-level college courses, but also for the demands of their chosen careers."

Bennett has taught numerous first-year writing courses since 2009 at Arkansas State University. She has also taught at the University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville and at Black River Technical College.
 
During her career at Arkansas State, she has been nominated for and received numerous honors and awards including the You Made a Difference Award, A-State Athletics Faculty Member of the Game, and the Disability Services Certificate of Appreciation. Bennett is a two-time alumna of Arkansas State, earning B.A. and M.A. degrees in English. She also holds a M.A. degree in Education from the University of Arkansas at Monticello and is currently completing her Ph.D. in Heritage Studies at A-State.
 
Each of the Sun Belt's 12 institutions nominated a Faculty Member of the Year, and the conference's Faculty Athletics Representatives, Student-Athlete Academic Directors and members of the Sun Belt Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) voted to select the overall recipient, who was Dr. Steve Grice at Troy University.
 
The Sun Belt Conference initiated its Faculty Member of the Year Award in 2019, and it has announced an overall recipient each of the last two years.  A-State's 2020 finalist was Assistant Professor of Business Law Dr. Mark Lewis, while Dr. Casey Rockwell of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock was tabbed the overall recipient.
 
"The Sun Belt Conference Faculty of the Year Award was established to recognize and promote the importance of exemplary faculty members in the lives of student-athletes at each member institution," said Arkansas State Faculty Athletics Representative Dr. Karen McDaniel.  "We are so fortunate to have faculty like Ms. Kerri Bennett and Dr. Mark Lewis who demonstrate such passion for our students."
 
The Arkansas State Athletics Department will recognize both Bennett and Lewis on Oct. 7, 2021, during the Red Wolves' Thursday-night home football game against Coastal Carolina that is set to kickoff at 6:30 p.m.