Karen Carr, professor of religious studies, is the 2005-06 winner of the University Award for Excellence in Teaching.
Carr, who joined the Lawrence faculty in 1987, is only the seventh person
in the 32-year history of the teaching honors to be recognized with both
the Award
for Excellence in Teaching and the Young Teacher Award.
A scholar on the history of Christianity and 19th- and 20th-century religious
thought, Carr is the author of two books, The Banaliization of Nihilism and
The Sense of Anti-Rationalism: The Religious Thought of Zhuangzi and Kierkegaard, a
comparative study of religious epistemology.
In presenting Carr her award, President Jill Beck said: “Your success at
teaching students the nature of early Christianity and the complexities of such
thinkers as Nietzsche and Kierkegaard makes it
clear
that you have a special ability to take the most difficult ideas and make them
come alive, without ever oversimplifying them. If the mark of
a good liberal education is being able to use knowledge to understand what
is vital for the human experience,
you
have clearly been successful with your students.”
Listen to Professor Carr's Freshman Studies lecture on Chuang Tzu's Basic Writings. (requires RealPlayer)
Read about the curriculum, interdisciplinary areas, and faculty research of the Department of Religious Studies.
