Montgomery College Professor Heather Bruce Satrom, who teaches English Language for Academic Purposes, received the American Association of Community Colleges’ Faculty Innovation Award.
Her oral history project on opening doors to deeper understanding and belonging for Montgomery College’s immigrant and refugee students was created during a sabbatical.
“History in the Making – Documenting Stories of Immigrant and Refugee Students at Montgomery College” contains interviews of students from countries as diverse as Iran, China, El Salvador, Ukraine and Haiti.
Satrom has been teaching non-native English speakers at the college since 2005.
“I am deeply honored to receive this recognition, which reflects on the inspiring students who participated in this oral history project,” Satrom said in a news release.
“It is my hope that increased attention to the project will bring them – and all community college students, especially immigrants, refugees, and first-generation students – increased opportunities. I hope this work will lead to greater empathy and that it will allow us to continue documenting stories, so others may learn from them.”
Satrom has participated in MC’s Smithsonian Faculty Fellowship, the Scholarship for Excellence in Teaching Fellowship, the Global Classrooms Fellowship, the Quantitative Reasoning in the Disciplines Fellowship, the Many Voices One College Global Humanities Fellowship and the Belfer National Conference for English Educators at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.
