Coconino Community College part-time faculty Kristine Ketel was selected by students and her peers
as the 2017 Part-Time Faculty of the Year. Courtesy photo.
FLAGSTAFF — For some students, she teaches the “scary” subjects: Public Speaking and Accounting.
That may be, but it didn’t stop students, fellow faculty members and staff from selecting Kristine Ketel as the 2017 Part-Time Faculty of the Year at Coconino Community College.
Ketel teaches Communication and Business courses at CCC. Among her classes are Introduction to Public Speaking, Advanced Public Speaking, Business Communications and Introduction to Accounting and Quickbooks.
“The thing I love most about teaching is the light bulb moment, when they go from thinking, ‘I can’t do this’ to realizing ‘I am doing this,’” Ketel said. “I am deeply excited when I can help somebody do what they didn’t think they could … That lights me up inside.”
Ketel added that she enjoys the classes that scare people – like accounting and public speaking – and taking the students to being comfortable and being able to master the subjects. Her intent is to make a nerve-wracking subject fun for the students.
“I want to break down the fear,” Ketel said. “I want to show it’s a skill that can be learned and mastered. Public speaking is often so critical in life – even if the student doesn’t think they’re going to stand on stage.”
Ketel calls her teaching process “interactive,” and she considers herself more a coach than a lecturer.
“I like to push people past their comfort level to the edge of what they are capable of,” Ketel said.
The win, to Ketel, is poignant as a part-time faculty member. She said that part-time faculty, often, have a difficult time finding a feeling of connection with an educational institution. It’s nice to be recognized for your work and to feel a part of the institution.
Ketel knows a bit about the business and communications disciplines. She started out in the private sector and has more than 25 years of business management and corporate training experience. She has a master’s degree in liberal arts and a bachelor degree in communication. Her true love is communication, and teaching has always been something she’s wanted to do.
In the private sector (software development, data analysis), she began teaching software workshops in 1993. When she moved to Flagstaff, she began teaching at CCC in the Career and Corporate Learning program. She would teach non-credit workshops in a variety of communication and tech topics.
In the spring of 2015, she began teaching part-time for the College, and she’s honored to be the recipient of the Part-Time Teacher of the Year award.
“It carried more weight with me because it was student initiated,” Ketel said. “It was incredibly rewarding and flattering. It’s an amazing honor to have your students, your peers and your administration recognize what you do and the impact you have.”