Patricia Jarema

Excellence in Teaching, 2022

Biological Sciences

Senior lecturer Patricia Jarema has many pedagogical talents, nurtured through experience, application and a commitment to innovative teaching techniques. She is known among her colleagues for sharing her knowledge and skills to help them improve their classes, and she brings a wide array of new activities and approaches that enhance student experiences.

Jarema, who teaches COLSA¡¯s largest statistics class, is also credited with a singular achievement: teaching statistics in a way that students find relevant and compelling. She has worked over the years to redesign and retool the course, which is taken by most students in the college, to make it an engaging, active learning class.

Her students¡¯ ability to retain and apply what they have learned underscores her prowess as a statistics teacher. Faculty consistently report that students remember and apply the statistical approaches they learn in her class. This includes not only standard classes but independent research and honor theses.

She is also admired for her dedication to assisting students with accommodations, mental health issues and disabilities. Even when teaching sections with 150 students, she does not hesitate to address students¡¯ unique needs. When one of her students was suffering from a traumatic brain injury that the student described as ¡°invisible¡± and often met with a ¡°lack of empathy,¡± Jarema created a new approach so the student could be successful at a pace that she could handle.

Jarema is generous with her knowledge and a dedicated teacher who applies the latest tools of the trade to her craft. She has deep concern for the success of every student, no matter barriers they may face.