Jean Sampson Wins Grandy Award and UMC Award in One Semester

Dr. Jean (Scheller) Sampson ’83, professor of management and marketing, has undoubtedly had a big spring semester this year. She received both the 2022 United Methodist Exemplary Teacher of the Year Award, given by the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry of the United Methodist Church, and the 2022 William Norman Grandy Faculty Award, given by the Alumni Association. There’s no doubt that Jean’s passion and commitment to the University and its students has earned her such prestigious accolades – and all in one semester, to boot.

Jean is no stranger to receiving acknowledgment for being an outstanding educator who prepares her students for various roles in the business world. In addition to serving as the chair of the School of Business since 2016, she was the recipient of the Grandy Award in 2014 and the Emerson Excellence in Teaching Award in 2012.

Since Jean began teaching at her alma mater in 2005, she has been making a positive impact on the McKendree community. She regularly volunteers, attends campus events that her students are involved in, teaches University 101 to help first-year students get acclimated with college life, takes on new advisees, picks up classes to teach last minute and happily serves on committees and works on projects that aren’t typically within the scope of her daily responsibilities.

Her students know her as caring, friendly, approachable and a professor who champions people with disabilities in the workplace and instills a sense of lifelong learning in her students. Throughout the pandemic, a time in which feeling connected to professors in an online format was difficult for students, Jean went above and beyond to add a personal touch by posting videos, checking in with her students and informing them about what was coming up for the week.

“In each course, no matter how jam-packed with students it is, she creates an easy-going, respectful environment,” said Dr. Alan Alewine, associate provost. “She particularly shines in her business ethics course where she focuses on personal responsibility, inclusivity and good citizenship. She stays positive in her work as chair and creates and maintains a collegial atmosphere, insists upon civility and serves as the ideal anchor for the School of Business. She has the heart of a Bearcat!”