UM professor earns national environmental award

May 21, 2020

Dr. Susan Caplow, associate professor of environmental studies at the University of Montevallo, has been named among the top instructors in her field by the Association for Environmental Studies and Sciences.  

Each year, the association recognizes faculty, scholars and students in environmental studies and sciences who exemplify the highest standards of teaching, scholarship and service to the education community. 

The Association for Environmental Studies and Sciences is a scholarly and professional organization that promotes interdisciplinary research, teaching and service for faculty and students in the more than 1,000 environmental academic programs nationwide and beyond. 

Caplow was awarded the AESS Early Career Award. This award recognizes outstanding accomplishments and promising future potential for teaching, research, policy or activism in any field of environmental science and studies.   

Through the award, AESS honors individuals who are early in their careers, but have made significant contributions to knowledge, community and diversity in environmental studies and science, and have a career plan and trajectory that promise to continue and bolster such contributions.   

“Professor Caplow exemplifies the spirit of AESS in terms of her pedagogical, scholarly and participatory approaches to ESS and has already proven herself a leader in the AESS community,” according to the association.  

At UM, Caplow combines a profound emphasis on each of the areas of teaching, research and community engagement. She founded one of only a handful of environmental studies programs in higher education in Alabama, and also developed an environmental education program that serves K-12.  

Caplow has established an impressive publication record, with articles in environmental education, conservation evaluation and the link between engagement and environmental values.