Sherrill V. Martin, professor of music has been selected
as a 2007 Excellence in Teaching 
Award recipient by the Board of
Governors of the 16-campus University of North Carolina. During a recognition luncheon
to be held in conjunction with the board's May 11 meeting, a faculty member from each
UNC campus will receive a commemorative bronze medallion and a $7,500 cash prize.
Martin said she believes that much of the strength of her teaching, both classroom and
studio, results from the experience gained through performance and scholarship. Her
excitement about sharing new discoveries with her students is rewarded and reinforced
when they share their enthusiasm about new ideas with her. As a former student stated,
"She is a 'teacher's teacher,' unstinting in her commitment to students, creative and
resourceful in her choice of the literature, sage and witty in her presentation."
At UNCW, Martin has contributed to the personal and professional growth of thousands
of students. She noted, "I believe that, in addition to helping some of my students prepare
for professional and personal challenges in music, an even more important objective is to
help all students lead richer, more productive lives through their involvement with
music."
Martin credits her participation in seminars through the National Endowment for the
Humanities with significantly changing the direction of her research, service, and
teaching.
Formerly a Renaissance scholar, she now includes new editions of music, women in
music, Civil War music, and other American and African-American topics in
publications and presentations to university, community and professional groups around
the world. Her scholarship, in turn, has inspired her students, who have won several
awards in the UNCW Undergraduate Research competition.
At UNCW since 1979, Professor Martin has received a UNCW Award for Faculty
Scholarship, a Chancellor's Teaching Excellence Award, and a Distinguished Teaching
Professorship. She received her baccalaureate degree in piano performance from Samford
University, a master's degree in piano performance from the University of Alabama, and
a doctoral degree in musicology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
