Nick Baumgartner, Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences, presented Katherine Gatto with the 2001 Lucrezia Culicchia Award for teaching excellence. Dr. Gatto was unable to attend last year's ceremony because of the death her husband.
This year's winner of the Culicchia Award, Anthony Palermo (far right), Visiting Professor in Religious Studies, posed with his wife Julianne, mother Louise, and father Anthony, who taught Italian at JCU for many years.
Palermo, Visiting Professor in Religious Studies, thanked several in the faculty audience "who molded and shaped a rather shy young man who entered John Carroll in 1975." He singled out David Mason, who "lit a fire" in him ... Joe Miller, whose pep talks helped him overcome his fear of speaking in front of the class ("I waited until my senior year to take speech communication and I took it in the summer! ... and I haven't shut up since") ... Joe Kelly, who asked him to teach his first course ("I jumped at the chance") ... Paul Lauritzen, who gave him his first opportunity to experience fulltime teaching "and enabled me to do more of what brings me joy" ... also John Spencer, Fr. Tom Shubeck SJ, Marian Morton ... students Nate Savasco, Brian Sinchak ... "and a host of others here who helped me in professional and personal ways." But most of all he thanked his mother and his father "who taught here for over 45 years and was inspiring students long before I came on the scene."
The award, established by the late Tony Culicchia '64 in honor of his mother Lucrezia, includes a gift of $2,000.