Laura Eierman wins Brooks Dedicated Teacher Award

05/13/2026

Laura Eierman, a marine biologist and associate professor in SUNY Cortland's Biological Sciences Department, was recently recognized as the 2026 recipient of the university's Rozanne M. Brooks Dedicated Teacher Award.

Eierman is the 19th faculty member to receive the prestigious teaching accolade, which comes with a $7,500 honorarium to enhance teaching initiatives.

Eierman will be formally recognized with other university honorees this week during the 2026 Commencement Awards Dinner. She was selected by the Brooks Award committee composed of past honorees.

Committee members selected Eierman after two semesters of observations of her interactions with students, her unique and creative teaching approaches, her dedication to reaching out to students beyond the classroom and her overall ability to engage them in spirited, exciting and memorable learning experiences.

Her nomination was bolstered by glowing letters of support from colleagues in her department and other scientific fields and a half dozen letters from former students who raved about her effectiveness as a teacher and role model.

"I'm just feeling a sense of honor and gratitude," said Eierman, who is considering using the stipend in part to offset her out-of-pocket expenses used to help her students fundraise the money needed to study abroad in Belize or attend a professional conference.

"I'm so honored to have been recognized, starting with the fact that I was nominated to begin with, that a colleague thought enough of my teaching to nominate me, and then the people who supported me throughout the actual selection process."

Eierman was credited by the committee with being "an outstanding and engaging classroom instructor who consistently demonstrates a deep commitment to student success, investing significant time in mentoring, advising, and supporting students both academically and professionally.

"It was our pleasure to attend so many unique examples of superior pedagogy and to see firsthand a colleague develop impactful and lasting mentoring relationships with students," the committee stated.

They observed that Eierman's student-centered approach fosters an inclusive and motivating learning environment in which students feel encouraged to grow and achieve.

"I would say I have a quirky personality, and I don't hesitate to be my authentic self in front of the classroom," Eierman said. "And that really allows students to feel like the classroom is a safe atmosphere, which just leads to better engagement. Everybody feels like they can be who they are, whether that means making mistakes, giving wrong answers, having their own quirkiness. They are going to be respected and supported in the classroom, which leads to better learning."

Eierman said she just loves teaching.

"It is such a privilege to be part of the development of these young individuals as they're setting forth into their adult life - helping to guide them, to educate them and to help them develop the skills that they're going to need to be successful," she said.

Eierman, who has a doctorate from Cornell University, uses genetics to investigate human impact on marine life in order to improve ecosystem management decisions. She strives to engage students majoring in biology, biomedical sciences, conservation biology and adolescence education: biology in that learning process.

"As a broadly trained biologist, I investigate important conservation research questions from multiple perspectives," she said. "My work has included ecology, physiology, behavior and acoustics along with citizen science and stakeholder involvement."

Her student lab assistants help research her areas of interest, which generally include the study of marine invertebrates, marine ecology, conservation genetics and ecological genetics; and specifically focus on population connectivity across environmental heterogeneity and population structure.

Eierman actively promotes the careers of her mentees by maintaining a website detailing the research and accomplishments of her current and former lab assistants from SUNY Cortland and St. Mary's College of Maryland. Her published findings frequently credit students for taking part in advancing the area of inquiry.

Beyond the classroom, Eierman is an active and valued contributor to the university community, participating meaningfully in curriculum development, student scholarship and university initiatives.

"Her dedication to teaching excellence, mentorship and service makes her a truly deserving candidate for this recognition," the Brooks Award committee members noted.

The Brooks Award was endowed through the generosity of the late Rozanne Marie Brooks, a SUNY distinguished teaching professor and SUNY Cortland professor emerita of sociology and anthropology, and her former students, friends and colleagues. A SUNY Cortland faculty member for 36 years, Brooks died in 1997. The first award was presented in spring 1998, with 18 more honorees named since then.