Katie Carithers, 2026 Stephen J. Horne Award for Teaching Excellence Winner
We are thrilled to announce that Katie Carithers has been selected as the 2026 Stephen J. Horne Award for Teaching Excellence winner. This annual award celebrates a graduate student instructor in the English Department who best demonstrates outstanding commitment to student learning and excellence in teaching. Instructors are nominated by their students, and the Director of Graduate Studies, in consultation with the DGS Advisory Committee, selects the winner.
One of Carithers’ students included the following comment with their nomination:
“I think Katie really exemplifies all the qualities that make a person a great teacher. I really enjoy her class, “The Body in Victorian Literature,” and I can always tell that she really cares about her students. She is extremely knowledgeable in and passionate about the subject. I also appreciate Katie's ability to discuss emerging concepts/readings in the literature we are analyzing. I feel like a lot of times I have a thought that I'm kind of formulating, but can't quite find in class discussion, and she's really good at helping me, and the other students, push past our original thought/rephrasing our thoughts in a way that really succinctly summarizes the point I was attempting to get across. I feel like in discussion, she offers just enough of her own readings to get the conversation going while allowing room for everyone else to talk through their own ideas. Each area of Katie's class is carefully crafted to ensure we build skills we will use in our Duke English careers or in any writing we do. Even as a senior, I feel like her assignments help me by forcing me to rethink my own process and ensure that I am hitting all the basics I was taught but may have become laxer about over the years in English classes. I think everything about Katie's class (including the fact that a good number of us stick around after class to continue chatting about the readings) really proves that she deserves this award.”
Another student wrote in their nomination:
“Professor Carithers is perhaps one of the best instructors I have ever had the privilege of working under at Duke, and her infinite support for her students, coupled with her astounding knowledge of and passion for our course content, is more appreciated than she can know. Whether it be listening to her students' questions and concerns with genuine care or working with us one-on-one with more availability than any professor I’ve studied under at Duke, Professor Carithers truly cares for her students and believes in everyone’s ability to learn and grow. Nearly every student in my class with Professor Carithers has taken a course in which she was a TA or Professor in the past and has elected to study under her again, principally due to her prowess as an educator and her immensely effective teaching style. I have never felt more comfortable discussing with my peers than in Professor Carithers’s class. Her encouragement to engage in a variety of literary arguments truly allowed me to delve into the course content more than I tend to in such classes. I highly recommend Professor Carithers for this award; she has more than exceeded the standards for teaching excellence I have come to expect at the university writ large, and I am endlessly grateful for her instruction this past spring.”
Students from Carithers’ “Body of Victorian Literature” course enthusiastically spoke of her passion and expertise in Victorian literature, her unwavering support, and her inspiring teaching style. They often seek to take additional courses taught by her and recommend her courses to other students. Their glowing nominations reflect Professor Carithers’ positive impact on them and their academic journey.
The Stephen Horne Award for Excellence in Teaching was established in memory of Stephen Horne, a 1991-97 graduate student in English who displayed an inspiring passion for teaching that was evident to his students, friends, and mentors. The award serves as a tribute to his enduring influence, celebrating instructors who embody his dedication and excellence.
