Clinical Professor Carla Laroche Honored With the 2020-21 University Teaching Award for Community Engaged Teaching

Congratulations to Clinical Professor Carla Laroche, who was honored virtually yesterday with the 2020-21 University Teaching Award for Community Engaged Teaching! This is a new award at the university, and Professor Laroche is the sole inaugural recipient. The award honors faculty members who teach exemplary courses in which students engage with the broader community through service learning, community writing, public scholarship or similar. It also recognizes teaching excellence as multifaceted, involving areas such as providing a positive role model to students, imparting a respect for truth and a love of learning, challenging students’ thinking and assumptions, showing respect for all persons, and innovative instructional techniques. Professor Laroche's teaching has positively impacted numerous students since she joined the law school in 2018. She and the students in her Gender and Family Justice Clinic and its related projects have also made a difference in the lives of many people in the larger community. Through the clinic, Laroche supervises students as they represent clients who are currently and formerly incarcerated on family law matters. Laroche has collaborated with the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition, Refuge House and the Legal Empowerment and Advocacy Hub to fill a gap in legal services offered in our area. Laroche's students also conduct family law legal workshops for women in local jail and prison facilities. It is no surprise to anyone at the law school that Professor Laroche's teaching and work are being honored by the university.

Published on April 23, 2021