Perhaps it's the round-the-clock open-door policy she maintains. Or maybe it's the telephone calls she makes to students who miss a class. Then again, it could be the tireless work ethic she demonstrates.
Whatever it is, it now has a name: "The Iona Factor."
Iona Black, lecturer in chemistry, laughs at the mention of the term that was coined by her colleagues and students to describe her influence on the chemistry department since joining the faculty in 1995. "I don't know what they mean by that," she says. "I guess it's because I try to find solutions or direct people to others who can help them."
The way she carries out her teaching philosophy has garnered Ms. Black and Yale national recognition. On Oct. 6 in Kansas City, Missouri, Ms. Black was awarded the prestigious Certificate of Merit for Outstanding Advising by the National Academic Advising Association. The award honors faculty members "whose primary responsibility is teaching or program and curriculum development but who are exceptional individual student advisers," according to the academic association.
Ms. Black's presence on campus was felt almost immediately, says Kimberly Goff-Crews, assistant dean of Yale College. Upon the lecturer's arrival at Yale, recalls Dean Goff-Crews, Ms. Black talked with faculty and administrators to assess the Yale environment and the needs of the chemistry department. She then quickly went to work redesigning undergraduate help sessions, training teaching assistants to be more interactive, and offering extra one-on-one sessions. "Within a short time," says Dean Goff-Crews, "she had literally become the most popular instructor on campus, urging students to work hard and believe in their own success." Last May during Senior Class Day exercises (part of the annual Commencement weekend activities), Ms. Black was one of five faculty members honored as outstanding teachers. The citation for her award, the Yale College Prize for Teaching Excellence by a Lector or Lecturer, described her "remarkable success" in the classroom and her "exeptional intellectual and human gifts."
"Dr. Black is great," says freshman Tom Gioia, who takes her Chemistry 131L class and plans to go to medical school. With a busy schedule that includes football, "I came in really kind of anxious and flustered," he says. A cast on his right arm didn't help matters. "I told Dr. Black I might not be able to do the lab," he says. "But she basically settled me down. She put me together with a lab partner and everything was taken care of quick and easy." Other students have cited the lecturer for helping them improve study habits; for continuing to monitor their progress long after they've taken her class; and for showing them how to recognize and effectively deal with personal situations that may affect academic performance.
In her role as official adviser to dozens of students and unofficial adviser and mentor for scores of others, Ms. Black attempts to "get them past not trying for things because they think they're going to get rejected," she says. For example, she encourages students to apply for competitive scholarships, fellowships and other programs. If they don't make it this time, she tells them, then the odds will be even more in their favor the next time they apply.
She also emphasizes hard work and tenacity. "How hard you are willing to work and the ethics you are willing to keep as you overcome obstacles is 90 percent of the success formula," she says. "I think I try to instill in students that you don't have to be perfect." She notes, for instance, that "I don't ask what grade students get, I ask if they've done their best. And I ask them about all their courses, not just chemistry."
Ms. Black is responsible for eight teaching sections of Chemistry 131L (freshman chemistry lab) along with N. Ganapathi, lecturer in chemistry. She also is responsible for another 16 sections of Chemistry 113 (general chemistry). From the start, her students know two things: their work will be closely scrutinized and attendance is mandatory. "If they don't come to class, I call them and find out why," she says. She acknowledges that some students were somewhat taken aback by such proactive pedagogy but adds, "that gave people the idea that if you don't go to class, I'm going to call."
Ms. Black is no less demanding of her teaching assistants (TAs), a total of 11 chemistry graduate students who help undergraduates with lab assignments and exam preparation. In addition to regular meetings with TAs, Ms. Black often monitors the sections they teach "to help establish continuity," she says. She makes sure all freshman chemistry lab TAs conduct a trial run of each week's assigned lab experiment before it is attempted by undergraduates, and she guides all general chemistry TAs through pre-semester training sessions.
In addition to her teaching duties, Ms. Black is involved with a number of committees and organizations. She is a member of the chemistry department's curriculum committee and serves on the selection committee for the Bouchet/Mellon and the STARS (Science, Technology and Research Scholars) programs, both under the jurisdiction of the Yale College Dean's Office. She sits on the board of directors of the Afro- American Cultural Center and the student-run Urban Improvement Corp., and works on an informal basis with the fellowship nominating committee of the National Institutes of Health. She's also a Silliman College residential fellow and volunteers her time "wherever else I'm needed," she says, which often involves representing Yale at events outside the University.
A specialist in physical and inorganic chemistry, Ms. Black pursued a dual major in math and chemistry at Marymount College and holds an M. Ed. degree from Boston University and a Ph.D. in chemistry from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh.
Ms. Black's involvement with and concern for students merely reflects her own upbringing, says the educator. As part of a close-knit family of New Jersey farmers, "I'm used to somebody being concerned," she says. "I've been a very blessed lady, so I can't imagine not giving some of that back."
In giving back, Ms. Black has made a difference both inside and outside the classroom, say students and colleagues. "Dr. Black is not only a teacher and an adviser," notes one student, "she is our friend, our mentor and a part of our family here at Yale, all in one."
Joseph W. Gordon, dean of undergraduate studies and associate dean of Yale College, adds: "All in all, there is no doubt that even among our notable faculty, Professor Black stands out as a lecturer, an adviser, a mentor and a personal counselor. I believe that she has made major contributions to changing the culture of scientific education at Yale, and I know that she has turned around many individual lives."
--By Felicia Hunter