Melinda Mueller is still getting used to her new title.

“It’s very exciting,” Mueller, a political science professor, said. “I’m not accustomed to being the kind of person to have a title.”

Mueller, who was named Faculty Laureate for the 2008-09 school year, will officially be ushered into the role during today’s New Student Convocation at 7 p.m. in the Grand Ballroom of the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union.

With the new title comes the responsibility of representing the entire faculty. Mueller was selected as this year’s laureate not only for her teaching experience, but also for her involvement in national conferences.

Mueller presented research that she co-authored with political science professor Barbara Poole on the importance of service learning in a college setting at the Teaching Professor Conference, a national conference about teaching methods.

“I really enjoy attending the teaching conferences as a way to refresh my teaching skills, learn new techniques, and find out what other institutions are doing,” Mueller said.

Jeffrey Stowell, who headed the three-person committee in charge of selecting a faculty laureate, said letters of recommendation written by colleagues and evaluation forms filled out by students did not play a factor in selecting the laureate because all letters and evaluations for the candidates were fantastic.

Three candidates, including Mueller were vying for the laureate title, Stowell added.

“There were three strong applicants for the position, and it was very difficult to choose between them,” Stowell said.

Doug Graham can be reached at 581-7942 or at dtgraham@eiu.edu.