Philosophy Professor Stephen H. Daniel

“What better legacy can a professor leave than such a love of learning that one wants to continue studying whether or not in school?”

That’s how one undergraduate student described the impact of Philosophy Professor Stephen H. Daniel’s teaching.

So it came as no surprise that a Liberal Arts committee selected Daniel to the Murray & Celeste Fasken Chair in Distinguished Teaching in the Liberal Arts. The late Murray Fasken and his wife Celeste, formerly of Midland, created the endowed chair to recognize and reward outstanding teaching within the College of Liberal Arts.

Daniel came to Texas A&M University in 1983 from Spring Hill College in Alabama. It was there, teaching as many as five classes that required four preparations per semester that Daniel developed his underlying philosophy about teaching: you don’t teach material, you teach students.

“I have found that unless students are interested in the issues or questions raised in a discipline, they will not try to understand a problem in all its complexity,” wrote Daniel. “Instead, they simply memorize facts or do what is necessary to get a grade.”

He enjoys teaching at every level, from multi-section introductory courses to graduate seminars, and his success is due, in part, to his meticulous preparation and love of philosophy. He thinks about how different students in his different classes will interact with the material. Daniel has learned that graduate students want the chance to demonstrate their mastery of topics in depth. Undergraduate majors thrive on connecting issues, and non-majors taking his introductory to philosophy class enjoy being able to explore and evaluate different perspectives.

He employs different techniques with each class, but with a specific result in mind.

“Students revel in tackling questions they find intriguing, and my role as a teacher is to challenge them to defend their positions, provide lots of feedback, and encourage them to try again when they come up short.”

During his more than 20-year tenure he has earned five teaching awards: two at the college level, one from the Honors program, and two at the university level.

“His syllabuses are models of thoroughness and clarity, and students often note that he makes learning a complex subject much more manageable,” wrote Interim Philosophy Department Head Robin Smith. Because he knows how daunting key concepts in philosophy can be for students, he takes great care to organize his syllabuses to ensure students know exactly what will be studied, what Daniel expects them to do, and what he expects them to learn.

But what inspires the students is his enthusiasm for philosophy, his high expectations, the effort he puts into teaching the material and the time he willingly commits to helping students with problems.

“Dr. Daniel had the highest expectations from each of his students – he would not settle for lazy answers or half-hearted involvement,” said Lisa D’Souza, a former undergraduate who later earned a J.D. from Harvard Law School. “He drew forth from each of us our best efforts, and because his teaching was inspiring we gave our best willingly.”

Even after two decades in the classroom, Daniel still seeks ways to better convey his subject matter. Last summer he took a seminar on how to incorporate instructional technology into his introductory philosophy classes and is currently participating in a series of workshops on teaching large classes.

“One of the lessons he has taught me in this regard is that teaching is never an obligation, but an opportunity and a challenge for self-development that always has to be confronted with sincere endeavor,” wrote Jason W. Cato, a former graduate student now in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Texas.

Using funds from the Fasken Chair, Daniel wants to take his love of teaching to those on the front line – his fellow teachers in the College of Liberal Arts.

In his personal statement, Daniel stated he plans to use the funds to create a Liberal Arts Teaching Academy modeled on that of the Center for Teaching Excellence.

“This idea for a college wide teaching academy has the potential to have a widespread impact on teaching and learning all across the College of Liberal Arts,” stated Charles A. Johnson, dean of liberal arts. “This is exactly the kind of influence that the Faskens envisioned when they endowed this chair.”