Congratulations to Jeremy Ricketts, Recipient of the English Faculty Mentoring Award
Lecturer Jeremy Ricketts is one of the two recipients of the 2025 English Faculty Mentoring Award. Our English Faculty Mentoring Award was established by generous donors who themselves benefited from the encouragement of supportive faculty at pivotal moments of their undergraduate careers. This $2,500 award recognizes English Department faculty who have gone above and beyond in mentoring students.
Jeremy’s mentorship focuses on what Catherine J. Denial calls the pedagogy of kindness, which involves both supporting and challenging students. “It offers flexibility while fostering accountability. And it attends to both intellectual growth and human dignity,” Jeremy says. “A pedagogy of kindness means being there for students in ways both small and large.”
Students in Jeremy’s course have recognized this kindness, mentioning how this has impacted them in their IDEA evaluations, with students saying, “[Your] kindness and unwavering support create an environment where success feels within reach” and “[You were] very encouraging, helpful and kind. I felt that you gave me a sense of reassurance and that I was more than capable of getting through not only this class alone but my whole semester.” His students have recognized that his unwavering support, reassurance, and encouragement creates an environment that pushes students to be their best selves.
Jeremy has served in USU’s Faculty-to-Student Statewide Mentoring Program for the past two years, where he meets monthly with students in the Statewide system to give them individualized support on their goals and challenges. As a Statewide lecturer, Jeremy works with students across campuses, providing them unwavering support despite distance. An example of his commitment to provide support and mentorship was showcased when a student in Logan asked to meet him to discuss career goals. Since the student didn’t want to talk over Zoom, Jeremy drove three hours each way to meet him to ensure he had support in his decisions. Jeremy said the experience was “worth every minute” because he wanted to genuinely listen and provide encouragement to this student.
This was just one example of the ways Jeremy has gone above and beyond even outside of the classroom to provide mentorship to students. Over the past five years Jeremy has been at USU, he has taught over 1,5000 students, including first-generation, rural, veteran, and minority students. He’s been dedicated to helping students find resources and support for housing, jobs, food sources, scholarships, and mental health support. Even when he can’t provide this help directly, he finds someone who can.
To all students, Jeremy provides mentorship through his teaching by holding one-on-one writing conferences, offering individualized feedback, and designing activities that combine intellectual development with individual relevance. His courses give students ownership of their learning by featuring “choose your own adventure” pathways that connect to career interests and by inviting students to write poll questions, form collaborative projects and activities, and pursue research paths aligned with their individual career interests. “These aren’t just teaching strategies—they are mentoring practices that affirm students’ humanity,” Jeremy reflects. “I model vulnerability to show them that I can provide both communal and individual support. I teach students to encourage one another as writers and thinkers. And most importantly, I listen.”
Jeremy’s mentorship extends beyond that of students. He currently serves as the Interim Director of Concurrent Enrollment (CE) for English. This year, he’s helped mentor 29 CE teachers who teach over 1,300 students across the state. Through this role, he has also co-presented with these teachers at the Conference on College Composition and Communication and co-authored a book chapter on CE reciprocal mentorship.
In 2024, Jeremy was named Lecturer of the Year at USU, which highlighted the importance of his student-centered approach and commitment to providing mentorship across USU campuses. He also attends colleagues’ presentations and workshops: “I believe that good mentoring is mutual, and I’m grateful to work alongside thoughtful, generous colleagues who model care in action.”
On being recognized with the English Faculty Mentor Award, Jeremy comments, “Receiving this award is a deeply meaningful honor. Working with students is the most rewarding part of teaching, and this recognition reflects all of the incredible things our students are doing that continually amaze and inspire me. I feel privileged to support that work in any way I can.”
The English Department is deeply grateful to the donors who have made this award possible and to all the many friends and alumni who encourage the wonderful work of our faculty and students.