Oliphant-Ingham Named National Top 10 Faculty Member

Rosemary Oliphant-Ingham is one of 10 outstanding faculty members to be recognized by Kappa Alpha Theta nationwide. Courtesy Ole Miss News

Rosemary Oliphant-Ingham, a professor of secondary education at the University of Mississippi, has been honored by the national Kappa Alpha Theta Fraternity as one of the nation’s Top-10 Outstanding Faculty Members.

Oliphant-Ingham has been a member of the UM School of Education faculty since 1998 and is the coordinator of secondary education in the Department of Teacher Education. She was among 10 educators selected from 110 nominees nationwide to receive the honor.

“I knew that I had been nominated by the Ole Miss chapter of Theta, but I had no idea it was for national recognition,” Oliphant-Ingham said. “I was quite surprised when I found out that I had been selected. It really was quite nice.”

Recipients are considered for the award based on nominations provided by students within the fraternity. Gabby Vogt, a sophomore English education major at Ole Miss, nominated Oliphant-Ingham. Vogt is a fellow in the Mississippi Excellence in Teaching Program, where she has worked closely with Oliphant-Ingham.

“Scholarship is Theta’s highest aim,” said Vogt, a native of Metairie, Louisiana. “Dr. O-I makes it clear that academic success is critical. She encourages lifelong learning and sets the example by continuing to take classes in subjects that do not pertain to her field. Dr. O-I continues to be an example of a leading woman and mentor for me and other fellows in METP.”

Established in 1870, Kappa Alpha Theta was the nation’s first Greek-letter fraternity for women. Since 2011, the organization has selected 10 outstanding college faculty members annually to receive this prestigious award.

“Since our founding nearly 150 years ago, scholarship has been our highest aim,” said Laura Ware Doerre, Kappa Alpha Theta national president. “We are delighted to recognize the faculty members who help cultivate our intellectually ambitious women.”

As part of this recognition, Oliphant-Ingham and her work at UM will be featured in the winter edition of the Kappa Alpha Theta Magazine.

Besides Oliphant-Ingham, the 2015 honorees are:

George Bent, Washington & Lee University
Allison Calhoun, Whitman College
Justin Dyer, University of Missouri
Peter Gallay, Quinnipiac University
Richard Hardy, Indiana University
Kristen Jamison, University of Richmond
Katherine Merseth, Harvard University
Rupert Nacoste, North Carolina State University
William Smedick, Johns Hopkins University

Courtesy Chaning Green & Ole Miss News