Samford University’s Department of Geography and Sociology in Howard College of Arts and Sciences has been “put on the map” with an award from the American Association of Geographers (AAG).

This spring, at the AAG annual conference in Honolulu, Hawaii, Samford received an honorable mention for the 2024 AAG Award for Bachelor’s Program Excellence. This award is quite the achievement for a department Samford’s size. While the other university recognized has 10 geography faculty members, Samford is shining with four faculty, plus one adjunct professor.

Since the Geography and Sociology departments merged in 2018, the department has thrived by cultivating interdisciplinary work between the two majors, including the creation of two inderdisciplinary minors: Race, Ethnicity, and Social Justice and Environmental Studies. 

Jennifer Speights-Binet, department chair, accepted the AAG award on behalf of the university.

“What I’m most proud of with this recognition is the success we’ve had creating a healthy department from two previously separate programs,” Speights-Binet said. “The citation recognizes our innovative interdisciplinary work with sociology and other programs, as well as our commitment to collegiality and a community of care between faculty, staff and students. For our size, we are highly productive in teaching, scholarship, and service at the college, university, and especially the disciplinary level.”

This award recognizes Samford’s commitment to high-quality instruction and continued professional development. The AAG also recognized the department’s dedication to community engagement through the development of county-level data monitoring tools for the COVID-19 pandemic.