Dr. Shearon Roberts is the recipient of this year’s Scholarship Award. Dr. Roberts, an associate professor of mass communication, joined the Xavier family in 2014. Dr. Shearon Roberts teaches Editing, Media Writing, Digital Media Production, African American and Diaspora Studies, Latin America and the Caribbean, and serves as director of Xavier’s Exponential Honors program since 2020. This year, she was also selected by USC's Annenberg School Center for Public Diplomacy as one of its 2021-2022 Faculty Research Fellows. Dr. Roberts is from San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago, and her second home is here, in New Orleans. Not only is she a mentor to her students, she is also an author. She recently published “Recasting the Disney Princess in an Era of New Media and Social Movements'' in March 2020. She was also published in The SAGE International Encyclopedia of Mass Media and Society. 

“In all my research projects, I have centered my students, be it as research assistants or co-authors or through research mentorship. I want my research to be an extension of my teaching and service to students and that is how I approached being a scholar at an HBCU,” said Dr. Roberts.

Dr. Sharlene Sinegal DeCuir, an associate professor of history, is a Keller Family Endowed Professor and the history department chair at Xavier. Dr. Sinegal-DeCuir teaches courses on African American History, the U. S. Civil Rights Movement, and Hip Hop and Social Justice. This year, she has been named the recipient of the Teaching Award. Dr. Sinegal DeCuir (‘99)  graduated from Xavier with an undergraduate degree in history. She received Xavier’s 40 under 40 Young Alumni Award in 2014. Guiding her students through one-on-one engagement is important to Dr. Sinegal-DeCuir. She has worked in public history and has been featured on MSNBC, The New York Times and History News Network.

With the help of a cohort of colleagues, Dr. Sinegal-Decuir received a $500,000 Mellon Grant to create the new African American and African Diaspora Cultural Studies major at Xavier. She is also the primary investigator of the grant charged with creating an innovative program that focuses on New Social Justice Movements, Black Health Disparities, Decolonial Studies and Transatlantic Blackness. Hear her speech at the 2019 XU Founder’s Day Convocation event 2019 here. 

“I challenge students to become critical thinkers, analyzers, and orators of history past and present. I read every student evaluation, using them as guides to improve course instruction and content. I take great notice of elements in my courses that students feel are engaging and build upon those elements so that I continue to provide the best, clear, consistent, and relevant course content and instruction semester after semester.” said Dr. Sinegal-Decuir.

Dr. Jose Bautista, JP. Morgan Chase Endowed Professor of Business Solutions to Urban Economic Problems, has been named the recipient of the Service Award. Dr. Bautista joined the Xavier family in 1978 as an instructor. He teaches courses in Economics, Moral Philosophy and Business Decisions. Since the start of his professional career Dr. Bautista has aimed to impress upon students the importance of understanding and respecting people who have contrary or even adversarial opinions to theirs. As the President of the Board of Directors of the Catholic Community Foundation for the year 2021, and in his capacity as Co-Vice President of the Philippine Louisiana Historical Society, Dr. Bautista believes service to others reflects our shared faith in answering God’s call to care for one another.

“I believe it is crucial to understand that the profound words of our mission "to contribute to the development of a more just and humane society" are more of a call to action than verbiage relegated to the archives. As St. Katherine Drexel lived the commitment to make education the conduit for a better society, all Xavier faculty should  attempt to look within themselves and examine how they can use the God-given talents in their disciplines to make our students (and themselves) more creative contributors,” said Dr. Bautista. 

For more than five consecutive years, the university has ranked among the top three HBCU’s in the country. There is no doubt that Xavier’s success would not be possible without Xavier’s faculty and their dedication to student development while on campus and providing guidance and mentorship to them after they graduate.

Last year, faculty award decisions were made in the fall and announced in November. Those winners were: 

• Teaching Award: Elliott Hammer
• Scholarship Award: Elizabeth Manley
• Service Award: Richard Peters