Professor Erin Laudermilk, McCreery Teacher of the Year 2014, has become Dr. Laudermilk after completing her doctorate of philosophy in education from Northcentral University. While maintaining her status as an associate professor at Sterling College, Laudermilk worked toward her doctorate, writing her dissertation “Examining Athletic Training Students’ Perceptions of Professional Behavior on Online Social Media Using the Theory of Planned Behavior.”

“We are very excited for Erin and her accomplishments. She is a key member of the athletic training program, balancing her work with her studies and integrating the two together. She has been instrumental in developing the program’s high standards and in moving it forward,” said Dr. Ken Brown, vice president for Academic Affairs.

Laudermilk expressed how her studies have helped her work as a teacher.

“The specific degree program I completed allowed me to become a better and more effective professor through studying and applying various teaching methodologies, assessment strategies, and curriculum design approaches. I was able to study, in depth, the body of literature and research that has been published on education in athletic training, which again, has helped me in my own teaching but also within our curriculum and program.”

Sterling College is a Christ-centered, four-year college located in Sterling, Kansas, with a mission to develop creative and thoughtful leaders who understand a maturing Christian faith. For more information, visit www.sterling.edu.