CWLC Professor Receives Teaching Excellence Award

Polina Maksimovich, a teaching assistant professor in the Center for World Languages & Cultures, part of the College of Art, Humanities & Social Sciences (CAHSS), recently received the ACTR Teaching Excellence Award for Post-Secondary Instructors, a national honor presented by the American Council of Teachers of Russian (ACTR). This award recognizes outstanding dedication, innovation, and impact in the teaching of Russian at the post-secondary level. For Maksimovich, the recognition is both professional and deeply personal. 

“Receiving this award from the American Council of Teachers of Russian is profoundly meaningful,” Maksimovich said. “It represents major recognition from the leading organization in my field, one that has been instrumental in my professional development over the past decade.” 

Maksimovich noted that ACTR has shaped her evolution as an instructor, helping her develop a reflective, rigorous, and student-centered teaching approach: “This award feels like a milestone in that ongoing journey,” she said. She added that the honor reinforces her commitment to mentorship, service, and continued contributions to Russian language studies and foreign language education more broadly.  

Congratulations to Professor Maksimovich on this well-deserved recognition of her outstanding dedication to teaching excellence and student success at DU.