Farmer Captures Caterpillar Teaching Award

Mark Farmer says his teaching credo is simple: “Know the material exceptionally well, convey it clearly and creatively, love your students, and just be yourself in the classroom.”
It may be simple for Farmer, but the achievement of all of this is a feat worthy of recognition, according to Farmer’s students and other members of the Valparaiso University campus community.

Mark Farmer, assistant professor of foreign languages and literatures at Valpo

They nominated Farmer, and he has received, the 2006-’07 prestigious Caterpillar Award for Excellence in Teaching, presented annually to a Valpo professor who “displays proven excellence in engaging and empowering students, in using innovative methods of teaching, and in enhancing the personal, intellectual and spiritual growth of students.”
An assistant professor of foreign languages and literatures, Farmer joined Valpo’s faculty in 2000, after earning his master’s and Ph.D. degrees in classical studies from Loyola University in Chicago. He conducts research on Greek epics and tragedies, Roman rhetoric and philosophy, and classical mythology.

He characterizes his teaching style as relaxed, informal and somewhat unconventional.

“I consider my students fellow travelers on the road to wisdom and knowledge,” he says. “I meet them where they are and, not so much pushing them as a disciplinarian as motivating them as an enthusiastic and capable guide, I help bring them to where we need to be.”

Farmer also believes in infusing his teaching with technology. He requires students to develop PowerPoint presentations, which he later uploads to a CD that can be used as a resource for final exams and more.

In addition to teaching, Farmer organizes the annual lecture series for the university’s chapter of the American Institute of Archaeology. He has served as adviser to VU’s chapter of classics honor society Eta Sigma Pi and the student group Alliance, and as books editor for the scholarly journal Religious Studies Review.