Enter to Learn. Depart to Serve.
This is the motto of Winston-Salem State University (WSSU), a bold, Historically Black College or University (HBCU) serving the North Carolina Community since 1892. Guided by this commitment, student success at WSSU is centered on preparing students to become lifelong learners and thrive in a rapidly changing world. Inspiring students is a college-wide commitment, and faculty are at the center of that shared mission.
To further their commitment, WSSU partnered with ACUE to provide faculty with structured, research-backed professional development. Through the partnership, the university has equipped instructors with the tools and strategies they need to create transformative learning experiences.
Effective Teaching and Intentionality
At WSSU, faculty, staff, and leaders build intentional and meaningful relationships with students. Belonging, representation, and culturally responsive pedagogy are foundational to academic excellence. At the heart of their approach is effective teaching, which is deeply connected to the lived experiences of students.
“Effective teaching is teaching with the student in mind,” says Dawn N. Hicks Tafari, PhD, Professor of Education. “Effective teaching takes the content, and it makes it inspiring. It’s vibrant. You make connections with students. They see themselves as learners.” Dr. Hicks Tafari adds that effective teaching fosters belonging and invites students to see themselves not just as recipients of information, but as active participants in their own learning.
In this way, effective teaching at WSSU is both a reflection of its historic mission and a strategy for advancing student success in the present. By centering students, honoring identity, and preparing graduates for a rapidly evolving world, WSSU continues the HBCU tradition of transforming lives through education.
“We have to think intentionally about student success,” says Denise Nation, PhD, Chair and Associate Professor of Justice Studies. “We have to think intentionally about the transformative nature of our society, the transformative nature of the world, and how we actually prepare students to meet those transformative changes.”
National Recognition for Teaching Excellence
In 2025, WSSU was named one of ACUE’s 2025 Movement Makers, a national recognition honoring institutions advancing student success through a sustained commitment to evidence-based teaching excellence.
“Winston-Salem State University is a Historically Black College or University. Our commitment to student success is evident in our mission and our vision,” says Stevie Lawrence, PhD, Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs. “Our faculty’s involvement with ACUE has been a way to personify that commitment.”
Being named a 2025 Movement Maker affirms WSSU’s leadership in faculty development and its impact across campus. The recognition highlights how intentional investment in teaching excellence can elevate institutional culture and strengthen student success efforts at scale.
“Winning the Movement Maker Award really reinforces the importance of the work that we are doing in faculty development,” says Jeremiah E. Shipp, EdD, ACUE Academic Director and former WSSU Campus Lead. “It really helps to center the role that faculty have in our campuses to ensure the success of all of our students.”
Teaching With Students at the Center
Faculty consistently emphasize that their role exists because of their students. “As a professor, I always recognize that I’m only here because of the students,” says Fenghai Guo, PhD, Professor of Chemistry. “And that’s why it’s important to keep improving, to adapt.”
Faculty at WSSU are committed to refining their craft by learning new strategies, testing innovative approaches, and applying research-backed practices that improve student engagement and achievement. Through engagement with ACUE’s evidence-based teaching practices, WSSU faculty have strengthened their ability to design inclusive learning environments, promote active engagement, and support student persistence. The result is instruction that is not only rigorous, but relational and relevant.
“One word I would use to describe my experience in the ACUE course is just ‘beneficial,’” says Patrick Crowe, PhD, Assistant Professor, Sport Management. “All of the material provides evidence-based teaching practices which are effective, and having those resources benefit practitioners of knowledge throughout their experiences.”
