Communication Sciences and Disorders professor receives 2025 Shirlyn B. McKenzie Teaching Excellence Award
Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders Assistant Professor Cathy Torrington Eaton, PhD, CCC-SLP, has received the 2025 Shirlyn B. McKenzie Teaching Excellence Award.
School of Health Professions Dean David Shelledy, PhD, RRT, RPFT, FAARC, FASAHP, presented Eaton with the award on Dec. 16 at the School of Health Professions fall faculty meeting. Eaton previously received a 2025 Presidential Excellence Award for Teaching Excellence–Emerging from UT Health San Antonio.
“Receiving this award was an honor and surprise,” Eaton said. “It's wonderful to be recognized for the effort I dedicate to teaching the next generation of speech-language pathologists. Experience has taught me that the best learning environments are created by clearly communicating teaching objectives, organizing course content effectively, providing targeted and timely feedback, and treating students with dignity.”
Given by the School of Health Professions to a faculty member who has demonstrated excellence in teaching, the award honors the legacy of Distinguished Teaching Professor Emeritus and Chair Emeritus Shirlyn B. McKenzie, PhD, MLSCM, an internationally known leader and educator in the medical laboratory sciences profession who led the Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences for more than two decades.