Dr. Alisa Russell Awarded 2026 Reid Doyle Prize for Excellence in Teaching

By Erin Marlow, Communications Specialist in the Office of the Dean of the College

Dr. Alisa Russell, newly tenured and promoted to Associate Professor of English, has been selected as the 2026 recipient of the Reid-Doyle Prize for Excellence in Teaching. The Reid-Doyle Prize, established in 1971 and renamed in 1986, recognizes the generosity of the late Wilbur Doyle, who endowed the prize in honor of his philosophy professor A.C. Reid. The prestigious award recognizes an outstanding tenure-track faculty member who embodies the teacher-scholar ideal and is early in their career. 

Since joining the Department of English in 2020, Dr. Russell – a genre-focused writing scholar with training in rhetoric and composition – has designed courses ranging from Writing 111 to upper- and graduate-level seminars that prepare students to write effectively across disciplines. Her pedagogy is both innovative and deeply intentional: carefully sequenced readings and assignments build on one another, invite experimentation, and equip students with lifelong writing and critical thinking skills. Many students remark that her classes were “transformative” and changed their perspective on writing. 

“Dr. Russell’s empathy, passion for social justice, and ability to create an inclusive, intellectually engaging classroom environment were consistently noted as reasons why students consider her courses among the best they’ve taken at Wake Forest,” said Dr. Zak Lancaster, Associate Professor of English and Co-Director of the English M.A. program. 

In addition to being an outstanding educator, Dr. Russell is a dedicated mentor. She serves as an undergraduate advisor, regularly participates on thesis committees, and has played an important role in the English M.A. program, opening her home to weekly writing groups. For her many contributions to student mentorship, Dr. Russell was awarded the 2023 Excellence in Advising Award from the Office of the Dean of the College. 

Beyond her own classroom, Dr. Russell’s scholarship and research on Writing Across the Curriculum have laid the foundation for sustainable, College-wide writing instruction at Wake Forest. Her 2023 Phase 1 report, Writing and the Teaching of Writing Across the Disciplines at Wake Forest, draws on survey results, classroom observations, and syllabi analyses from 19 departments across the College to assess the culture of writing on campus. In addition to fostering meaningful dialogue among faculty, this ongoing research project aims to advance writing education so that students are prepared to write across a variety of genres – in all of their courses and in their future careers. 

Dr. Russell’s unwavering dedication to her students, combined with her innovative and engaging teaching, exemplifies the excellence the Reid-Doyle Prize was created to recognize. The Dean and faculty congratulate Dr. Alisa Russell as this year’s deserving recipient.