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“ There is this really weird line between like crippling self-doubt and uncontrollable narcissism . That ’ s kind of where most artists sit . When I won the award , I was like , ‘ So , I don ’ t suck at this . That ’ s cool to know .’”
“ When I got here and got the opportunity to meet everybody , I instantly felt like part of a family ,” Zerbe said of the interview process . “ I had never felt that in any job ever before . I really was hoping and praying that I was going to get the position . It ’ s truly an amazing place .”
Zerbe teaches courses in videography , animation and web design for SHU ’ s art department . She said Siena ’ s students are unique from other art students she ’ s encountered .
“ They are just hard-working and saltof-the-earth ,” she said . “ They come in and they don ’ t have that air that a lot of art students have . … The students are kind and they ’ re willing to work hard and they ’ re here because they truly believe in the process and they want to better themselves .”
She said she not only wants to make them better artists , but better people .
“ I believe that ’ s what we do here , is prepare them to be what we talk about in our mission statement , to be competent , purposeful and ethical individuals ,”
Zerbe said . “ That ’ s beyond just the material that they ’ re learning . I want them to be competent artists , but it ’ s more important to me that they are competent individuals and they ’ re going to be productive members of society .”
She said she uses her flamboyant style to often overcome her feelings of anxiety around others .
“ I am actually very , very anxious and awkward and kind of uncomfortable ,” she said of her social side . “ So I compensate by being goofy . That ’ s my defense mechanism . Deep down I ’ m still this nervous young kid who wants everybody to like me . I pretend to be goofy to balance that out . But when I need to be serious , I can be .”
She said despite her vast experience in digital media , she has recently returned to her artistic roots to help deal with the unexpected death of her father a couple of years ago .
“ I recently fell back in love with drawing and illustration ,” Zerbe said . “ I found that to be really cathartic to me .”
Outside of the classroom , she is using her art to help in the community . Selling her artwork at comic book conventions and expositions under the guise of Kimchi Zerbe , she donates all her proceeds to help the Lenawee Humane Society rescue , neuter and spay feral cats in the community .
“ This is a huge problem in Lenawee County ,” she said .
She said receiving the Rice Award helped validate her decision to follow the teaching path .
“ Maybe I ’ m not messing this up ,” Zerbe quipped . “ I ’ m doing OK . There is this really weird line between like crippling self-doubt and uncontrollable narcissism . That ’ s kind of where most artists sit . When I won the award , I was like , ‘ So , I don ’ t suck at this . That ’ s cool to know .’ It was kind of like a dream come true , to be acknowledged for the amount of work that I put in and the level of dedication I feel that I commit to my students . This was a great way for them to say , ‘ we do see it and we know you work hard , and thank you .’” u
2016 SHU Award Winners from Honors Convocation :
Outstanding Undergraduate Student Award : Senior Phoenix Duncan of Clayton , Mich .— Duncan , who graduated with honors in May with a bachelor ’ s degree in psychology , was involved in the McNair Scholars Program , track and field and several on-campus groups , including Adopta-Sister , Share the Warmth , Camp Sunshine and Kappa Gamma Pi , the national Catholic college honor society . As a high jumper , Duncan has been an NAIA All-American multiple times , including winning a national title during the 2015 outdoor season . She is currently employed with the Boys and Girls Club of Lenawee .
Outstanding Undergraduate Student Award : Senior Amber Denomme of Mason , Mich .— Graduating with honors in May with a bachelor ’ s degree in biology , Denomme has been a peer mentor for First Year Experience the past three years , a co-leader to 1Mosaic ’ s College Life , president of the Beta Beta Beta national biology honors society and a member of Scientia . Denomme plans on attending graduate school to become a physical therapist .
Thomas A . Emmett Award : ( Outstanding Junior Scholar-Athlete )—
Andrea Richards , Brody Davidson
Team Academic Award : Women ’ s Golf
Division Outstanding Student Awards : Business and Management : Kenneth DeGraaf ,
Parker Ross Computing , Mathematics , and the Sciences :
Anh Duong , Patrick Cuthbertson Education : Elizabeth Treece , Undergraduate Humanities : Lauryn Dempsey , Andrea Rumler Nursing : Katherine Blackmer , Cheyenne Booker Social and Behavioral Sciences : Kelsey Renee
Cunningham , Jessica K . Finney Visual and Performing Arts : Michelle Force St . Catherine of Alexandria Medal :
Amelia Balinski
Graduate College Outstanding Student Awards : Clinical Mental Health Counseling :
Linda Stewart , Nia Wolfe , Abigail Norris Health Care Leadership : Thomas Keith Higher Ed Leadership : Christine Irwin Organizational Leadership :
Fernando Kumaraningrat , Kourtney Price Teacher Education : Lisa Fisher
Faculty and Staff Awards : Staff Excellence : Keri Brenning , Kate Hamilton Jack Bologna Award for Innovative Teaching :
Alan Moore Sister Jean Cecile Hunt Outstanding Advisor
Award : Nicholas Kaplan
Professors Emeriti : William Blackerby , Claudia Blanchard , Mark Schersten , Sister Pat Schnapp , Anthony Scioly
Fred Smith Champion Award : Annita Aranda
Reflections Fall ’ 16 | 9