We are happy to announce Sabine Davis, Teaching Professor of Languages, Cultures, and Race with the College of Arts and Sciences at WSU Pullman, as a Crimson Spirit Award Recipient.

Sabine is an outstanding professional and a wonderful human being. She believes and embodies responsibility, commitment, enthusiasm, hard work, excellence, intellectual rigor, perseverance, but also empathy, compassion, generosity, collegiality, and a great sense of humor, her nominator states. The virtues makes her an encouraging professional, someone who positively engages her colleagues and students. Sabine brings out the best in those around her because she is an inspiring role model.

Her teaching has a huge impact on students as she understands her role as an educator as someone who guides our students and shows them the path to constantly improve and never give up. She encourages and motivates them to ask questions when the material studied is challenging or just to clarify assignment instructions. Undoubtedly, Sabine’s flawless professional ethic and camaraderie are just the most outstanding. The Crimson Spirit Recognition will just put in writing what is already evident to so many of us. In her teaching, service, and scholarly activities, Sabine Davis has vigorously demonstrated that she is a committed and engaging WSU member who, at every step, advances WSU’s mission, beliefs, and values.

I would like to mention one of Sabine’s students who utilizes a wheelchair. Sabine devoted countless hours to providing a path to success for this student. In reality, Sabine was promoting this student’s self-knowledge and self-awareness (of all her abilities) and, in doing so, her personal empowerment. Furthermore, everything Sabine implemented to accompany this student during the four years of her French major was the very embodiment of one of WSU’s Institutional Priorities, namely Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access, because she addressed the barriers of access to education and created educational experiences to serve underserved groups and increase access for different abilities. This is what makes Sabine Davis a leader of social change because she fosters and encourages in others her deep belief in inclusive processes that aim for change that makes people better.

Talking about Sabine’s classes, besides English, students learn about seven other modern languages from six different language families, namely Arabic, Chinese, French, Khoekhoe, Nez Perce, Spanish, and Swahili, as well as American Sign Language. In addition, Sabine developed a Faculty-Led Study Abroad Program in France. Sabine’s excellent service and leadership as an educator are clear through her engagement and commitment to pedagogical innovations, instructional contributions outside the classroom, and the range of teaching responsibilities.

Among many of her achievements, being published is perhaps the most notable achievement in research for someone with such a heavy teaching and committee service load as Sabine’s. In summer 2019, Sabine’s article, “French Culture through Wine: A Capstone Course,” was published in peer-reviewed journal, French Review. She has also created, from scratch, a Minor in French specifically for the students in the Apparel, Merchandising, Design and Textile Program. She was able to combine language, culture, and the specific interests of an important group of students. On top of that she has organized –along with Dr. Sarah Nelson (University of Idaho) the Palouse French Film Festival since 2010. In order to make this event possible, Sabine and Dr. Nelson successfully applied for a grant from the French American Cultural Exchange Council. Last semester, we enjoyed the 14th Edition of this event!