Spring 2020 Issue

2020 Plumeri Awards

Ten outstanding faculty and athletics staff members honored

June 8, 2020 By Tina Eshleman

A neuroscientist investigates how brain circuits initiate movements. A soccer coach leads the Tribe to success on the national stage. An English education professor examines the way that digital technologies are changing how people learn.

Their accomplishments have earned each of them a place among the 10 recipients of this year’s Plumeri Awards, which recognize faculty and athletic leadership excellence at William & Mary.

Joseph J. Plumeri ’66, D.P.S. ’11 established the award in 2009 to help outstanding professors take their teaching and scholarship to the next level.

“These William & Mary professors inspire their students every day with their passion, creativity and integrity,” Plumeri says. “They are fearless in challenging assumptions, and they bring the thrill of discovery to their classrooms and research. Because of this, our next generation of business, professional and community leaders can see that with imagination and vision, anything is possible.”

Beginning in 2019, the number of recipients changed from 20 to 10, the award amount increased from $10,000 to $20,000, and a designation was added for an outstanding coach or staff member of W&M Athletics. More than 200 faculty members have benefited from Plumeri’s generosity during the past 12 years.

Recipients of this prestigious award undergo a highly competitive formal selection process and are chosen based on their contributions and accomplishments in the areas of discovery, scholarship, teaching and athletics. Here are the 2020 honorees: