The Faculty Center for Teaching Excellence (FCTE) has selected Dr. Kara Harris and Dr. Carly Schmitt as Faculty Fellows for the 2026-27 academic year. Harris will serve as the Faculty Fellow for Pedagogy of Care, while Schmitt will lead the Career-Aligned Teaching and Assessment Community of Practice.
The two fellowships reflect the FCTE’s commitment to supporting faculty development and advancing teaching practices that help Indiana State University students succeed both in the classroom and beyond.
Dr. Kara Harris
Harris is a professor in the Department of Teaching and Learning in the Bayh College of Education, an affiliate professor in the Bailey College of Engineering and Technology and the university’s NCAA Faculty Athletics Representative. A first-generation college graduate of Indiana State University’s College of Technology, she earned her doctorate from Clemson University.
During her more than 17 years at Indiana State, Harris has held a range of faculty and administrative roles, including several fellowships focused on student success. She previously served as associate dean of student success in the College of Engineering and Technology. Regardless of her title, her work has consistently centered on helping students and the university succeed.
As the Faculty Fellow for Pedagogy of Care, Harris will lead a Community of Practice focused on how caring and intentional teaching practices can support student learning and success.
“To teach with care is to design our courses with rigor for the students in front of us rather than the students we imagined when we built them, or the ones we remember from 1998,” Harris said. “The pedagogy of care lives in ordinary places, in how we word an assignment, how we answer a question at 4:55 p.m. on a Friday, or how we respond when a student’s life gets loud.”
Dr. Carly Schmitt
Schmitt, associate professor of political science, will serve as the Faculty Fellow for Career-Aligned Teaching and Assessment. She earned her bachelor’s degree in political science from Eastern Illinois University, her master’s degree in political science from Southern Illinois University and her Ph.D. in political science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Schmitt began her career at Indiana State in 2011, teaching political science courses and leading civic and political engagement efforts on campus. In 2020, she received funding from the ISU Career Center through an Eli Lilly Grant to support career-readiness curriculum development. Through that work, Schmitt created and implemented a course connecting career-readiness skills, professional development and workforce preparation for students in political science and legal studies. Her research stemming from this work was published in the Journal of Political Science Education. Schmitt is also a 2026 recipient of the Caleb Mills Distinguished Teaching Award.
“I am looking forward to the opportunity to work with faculty on aligning and building curriculum that centers on the skills our students need for their future success,” Schmitt said. “Faculty collaboration, leadership, and development of curriculum that ensures that our students are ready for their careers is essential in meeting the mission of our university and the needs of our students.”
Molly Hare, director of the Faculty Center for Teaching Excellence, said both fellows bring valuable experience and a strong commitment to student success to their new roles.
“Kara and Carly bring complementary strengths and a shared commitment to helping our students thrive,” Hare said. “Kara’s passion for supporting students and her depth of experience will bring an important perspective to conversations about caring and intentional teaching practices, while Carly’s experience as an educator and campus leader, along with her work connecting academic experiences to career opportunities, makes her an excellent choice to lead the Career-Aligned Teaching and Assessment Community of Practice. We are excited to have both of them leading conversations that will help faculty strengthen their teaching and ensure our students are prepared for success at Indiana State and beyond.”
Through their respective Communities of Practice, Harris and Schmitt will facilitate faculty collaboration, professional development and conversations focused on strengthening teaching and learning. Together, their fellowships highlight the ways intentional teaching can support students’ experiences in the classroom while preparing them for success after graduation.