CCC faculty Dorel Meier was selected as the Part-Time Faculty of the Year 2021 by students and peers. Courtesy photo.
FLAGSTAFF — Math and statistics are Dorel Meier’s game. She finds it a worthy challenge to take students on a journey to understand how much of what they do in the world revolves around math and that it can be fun.
So, it’s no wonder that Meier was chosen as the Part-Time Faculty of the Year for the 2021-22 school year at Coconino Community College. She was nominated by students and by fellow faculty at the college.
“This award truly means the world to me,” Meier said. “I am so proud of the work I have done with CCC students and this award validates that I am making a difference in their lives.”
In her earlier days, the most common response she received from people when they learned that has a degree in Statistics is, “I hate math.” That’s when she knew she wanted to teach.
“I want students to learn to LOVE math, not to be intimidated by it,” Meier said. “I want them to see how powerful it is, to know the kinds of things that can be done with it.”
Students can readily feel her passion for the subject.
According to one student who nominated Meier, “I love how Dorel was virtually right there with you and applied math in a common sense and practical way that mirrored examples of how to use math in life. She was empathetic and helpful. I was so impressed at her professionalism.”
Another student wrote, “Professor Meier would give individual projects that helped us use real-life examples to prove statistics. She would give us free range, though, so that we felt like we were actually able to be involved in what we were studying.”
Meier, who has been at CCC since the summer of 2018, also holds part-time positions at Chandler-Gilbert Community College and Upper Iowa University. Prior to receiving her teaching certificate from Northern Arizona University and her master’s in Math Education from Western Governors University, Meier worked in the business world as a statistician for Intel Corporation. She taught high school math for eight years before moving to the college level.
She moved to the college level primarily for the students, particularly those at CCC.
“The population here is so unique,” she said, adding that her classrooms have military veterans, Native Americans and older adults who have returned to college. “CCC students have a dedication and passion for learning that I do not experience at any other college. They are a joy to work with, and I feel blessed to be a part of their journey.”
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected not only her students, but her, as well.
“Working remotely over the last year has made me feel disconnected from the people at CCC,” she said. “This award reminds me that I am a part of an amazing group of people.”
For more information about the Mathematics and Statistics pathways, visit https://www.coconino.edu/paths/engineering-math-sciences .