On May 15, Dr. Bruce dePyssler was awarded the Board of Govenors Award for Excellence in Teaching. Below is what was said about him in the commencement program.
Dr. Bruce dePyssler is an associate professor inthe Department of English and Mass Communication at N.C. Central University. A member of the department since 1998, he as been the faculty adviser of the Campous Echo, NCCU's award-winning newspaper, since 1999.
During that time, he has helped elevate the newspapr to national prominence. Under dePyssler's leadership, the Campus Echo has won more than 125 national awards from the Black College Communication Association, the Society of Professional Journalists and the Associated College Press Association.
One o its highest honors came in 2004 when the Campus Echo received the mark of Excellence Award from the SPJ for best all-arround online student newspaper. Additionally, NCCU has honored dePyssler and his student staff with the Chancellor's Award in 2006 and 2007.
These achievements demonstrate how instrumental he has been in encouraging minority students in the field of journalism at this HBCU. In recognition of such distinguished service, the National Conference of Editorial Writers awarded dePyssler with the prestigious Barry Bingham Senior Fellowship in 2010.
dePyssler played a key role in the development of NCCU's mass communication major in 2005, co-authriing the proposal for the major, developing 13 new courses and writing grants for essential supplies and equipment.
Not only is he technically skilled in the most current software in journalism and publishing, but he also has demonstrated that he can develop theoretical as well as practical skills courses to train his students.
It is no overstatement to say NCCU's major in mass communication would not exist today without his dedication, energy and professionalism.
dePyssler (or DP, as his student affectionately call him) regularly teaches core corses in the major, including desktop publishing, photojournalism, writing and reporting, and advanced public issues reporting.
dePyssler's students arre among the hardest-working and most dedicated on campus. In explaining his philosophy of teaching, dePyssler writes, "I embrace a pedagogical vision that strives to help students achieve self-respect, confidence, and critical self-awareness, a sense for the joy of understanding how our world works and the meaning that can be derived from participating in community and collective endeavor."
The success of his students and their respect and admiration for him are testaments to dePyssler's sustained commitment to effective mentoring and excellent teaching.
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