Herbert Stahlke, professor of English

Since joining Ball State in 1980, Herb Stahlke has consistently demonstrated dedication to the university, the Department of English, the discipline of linguistics and the many graduate and undergraduate students he has taught and mentored.

Attempts to characterize the breadth of his research interests will always fall short. He has presented research on the history of English, phonology, morphology, African languages and computer-assisted instruction. He has also published in some of the most prestigious linguistics journals, including the Linguistics Society of America flagship journal Language, as well as the International Journal of American Linguistics, Practical Anthropology, Studies in African Linguistics and Language Learning.

His outstanding work also extends to the classroom. He has taught 24 different linguistics courses at Ball State and consistently receives stellar student evaluations. Often he inspires undergraduates to take more advanced linguistics courses and even to add a minor in linguistics — an impressive achievement because many students enroll with the preconceived notion that studying linguistics will be painful and boring.

But the reality is that Stahlke has been at the heart of the language and linguistics area since its inception. He founded the Intensive English Institute in 198l, reorganized the master's programs in TESOL and linguistics and established the doctoral program in applied linguistics. These graduate programs are the largest in the English department and among the most successful in the university. Presently, he is the department's director of graduate programs, serving more than 120 students in seven master's and three doctoral programs.

In addition to outstanding scholarship and teaching, he has been an active participant in all aspects of university service, from administration to committee work. From 1988 to 1995, he was associate director for academic support and planning for University Computing Services, where he was responsible for overseeing a staff of 23 and a multi-million-dollar budget. His work helped to position Ball State as a leader in the use of technology in higher education.

In all of these endeavors, Stahlke has been the exemplary faculty member — motivated, visionary, organized and empathetic.