July 2025 Exceptional Teachers
We are interested in collecting your stories about faculty members, residents, nurses, or anyone else, who have impacted or influenced you in a significant way. Please tell us about what those teachers did that resulted in an exceptional educational experience and how it changed you.
This Month's Submissions
Below are the exceptional teacher recognitions shared with the Learning Environment Advocacy Committee this rotation. Thank you to these faculty for providing a great experience for our students.
July 2025 Clerkship Submissions
Emergency Medicine
- (Resident) Alex Atwood, MD – “did an exceptional job teaching and pushing me in a supportive way. While asking me about how I would manage a pneumothorax and digging deeper, he reached a point where I said "I don't know what I'd do next" and he said "yes you do." He made it clear it was okay to get things wrong, but I needed to try, especially in areas outside my comfort zone, because that is where growth happens.”
- (Attending) Christopher J. Waasdorp, DO; and (Resident) Davin Combs, MD – “I would like to give a special shoutout to Dr. Waasdorp and Dr. Combs as I was able to work with them each for more than one shift. They both went above and beyond to turn every patient encounter into a learning moment, encouraged me to own my patients, and were both excellent teachers, and exemplary physicians. They provided valuable feedback on things I was doing well, and things I could readily improve upon, and provided resources to do so.”
- (Attending) Michelle Clinton, MD – “was so encouraging and allowed me to be so heavily involved in patient care.”
- (Attending) Emily Faris, MD – “Thank you for all of your support when I experienced a significant injury
- during this clerkship. You were so helpful and understanding, flexible with scheduling, and thoughtful about my well being. I am so grateful for you - this made such a big difference for me to keep up with the clerkship and continue learning without additional stress.”
- (Attending) Karen Kuehl, MD – “made the environment extremely positive and welcoming from the start.”
Family and Community Medicine
- (Attending in Orthopaedics) Ryan Harris, DO – “Dr. Harris and his staff were particularly amazing preceptors, and they made me feel that I was a member of the team and not just a rotating medical student. I particularly appreciated that they found complicated or interesting cases for me that challenged me to think more deeply.”
- (Attending) Kelsey Norris, DO – “Dr. Norris was one of the major bright spots of the rotation. She pushed me to come up with my own plans and present them to patients.”
Internal Medicine
- (Attending) Luke Ennis, DO – “always took his time with patients and their families to explain what was going on and what the plan was moving forward. This was such a great example and model of how anyone should treat patients, and I have learned so much by his example during this rotation.”
- (Attending) Suzanne Kraemer, MD – “was such a great attending. If it was our patient, she let us lead the discussion in the room w/ the patient and family. This was a cool opportunity because it allows us to be an active member of the team, and it challenged me because I needed to be in tune with the plan and able to articulate it in a way the patient would understand.”
- (Fellow in Cardiovascular Disease) Jonathan Lipsey, MD – “was great because he would take the time to show me different teaching points throughout the day. If we were looking at an EKG, he would ask me what I thought about it, and encouraged me to extend my knowledge and was always very supportive about it. He also brought me to see an interesting physical exam finding that a patient had. Overall, he was actively trying to find me good learning opportunities always teaching me different things. I really appreciated how engaged he was with my learning.”
- (Resident) Quentin Palmer, DO – “is an amazing teacher and resident. He was always checking to make sure we were okay and asking if there was anything he could help with. He is a great example of being of service to others. I hope in his future roles, he continues to be in an academic setting because any learner that gets to work with him will be better from it. He has such a calm demeanor and genuinely seems to love what he does. He is a great team leader who truly cares about his colleagues. What a privilege it was to work with him.”
Neurology
- (Resident) Chukwudi Nwogu, MD – “was a great teacher and clearly made the effort to instill important neurology principles in us when he could. He assigned me patients that were important for my learning and happily answered any/all questions, even taking them a step further to really solidify the information. He would also take time out of his shift to teach us a neuro topic.”
- (Attending) Thomas Kodankandath, MD – “Dr. Kodankandath was wonderful to work with. He had very clear expectations for presentations and our role, and encouraged us share our plans and thoughts. He would also encourage us to explain them which I found very helpful in learning.”
OB-GYN
- NA
Pediatrics
- (Resident) Manahil Malik, MBBS – “Dr. Malik was excellent to work with! She was always mindful of the medical student's role on the team and always treated us with respect. She is extremely kind and a wonderful resident to work with!”
- (Resident) Colton Muller, DO – “Dr. Muller was one of the residents I've encountered this year that is the most enthusiastic to teach, and I'm very appreciative of it! From day one he set very clear expectations and always ensured that this was a safe-space learning environment. What I found most helpful was when he was teaching us calculating feeding goals or other calculations, he would quickly bring up examples of patients on the list for us to work through to practice with and then come back and check our work to ensure that we truly learned something and could apply it. He was always very positive and had a great bedside manner with his patients.”
- (Resident in Family Medicine) Rohit Dasgupta, MD – “One of the kindest and most empathetic people I have ever met! Such a great addition to the team. Dr. Dasgupta is always very excited to work with medical students and encourages us to practice clinical autonomy as much as possible to ensure we receive impactful clinical experiences during our time on this clerkship. I appreciated working with him greatly!”
- (Resident in Family Medicine) Allison Gerrard, DO – “Super friendly and super kind resident to work with! Always finding ways to support the team and exude positive energy. Dr. Gerrard has an excellent bedside manner with patients and their families. She is very inclusive of medical students' roles and responsibilities to ensure we are maximizing benefits of being on the team while also ensuring that we aren't overwhelmed. Very supportive!”
- (Resident in Emergency Medicine) Matthew Widmer, DO – “Dr. Widmer was an excellent resident teacher to learn from during our time on wards! He's great about letting students practice clinical autonomy for our patients and giving great constructive feedback on ways to improve. His Widmer constantly showed great examples of someone who is genuinely willing to help in any situation on the team, and be the person who is reliable and dependable that others would want on their team.”
- (Attending) Austin Drake, MD – “Dr. Drake was one of the best attending physicians I've worked with during my third year and exemplifies the kind of physician I aspire to become. He brings a consistently positive attitude that uplifts the entire team and fosters a collaborative environment. His practice is grounded in evidence-based medicine, and he frequently references the literature to support his clinical decisions. He also brings in great examples of clinical anecdotes he has experienced to solidify his reasoning. His bedside manner with patients and their families is exceptional, and observing the strong longitudinal relationships he's built highlights the value of continuity of care. Dr. Drake is fueled by his drive to teach, and his enthusiasm is contagious -- creating a supportive learning environment for both students and residents. He treats everyone with respect, provides thoughtful and constructive feedback, and actively seeks feedback on his own teaching. I feel incredibly fortunate to have worked with him in multiple settings, and I believe all students and residents are lucky to learn from such a kind, compassionate, and academically engaged physician.”
- (Attending) Elizabeth Stewart, MD – “Wonderful human!!! I loved working with Dr. Stewart and getting to experience her longitudinal relationships with her patients. Dr. Stewart is a great mentor for medical students' learning. She lets us practice our clinical decision-making and helps us reason through differential diagnoses, which I found very helpful. She is super inclusive and mindful of medical students' responsibilities and roles on the team. I feel that working with her, especially in my last clerkship of 3rd year, helped boost my clinical independence.”
- (Attending) Anne Washofsky, DO – “Inpatient with Dr. Washofsky was so much fun! I appreciated family-centered rounding with her. She treats medical students with so much respect and allows us to practice our clinical decision making and autonomy which was a very great experience. She is overall very fun to work with and boosts team morale with positivity. I thought Dr. Washofsky was a very encouraging and passionate teacher that I feel lucky to have worked with.”
- (Attending) Violet Borowicz, MD; and Erwood Edwards, Jr., MD – “Dr. Borowicz and Dr. Edwards are incredibly enthusiastic and dedicated teachers who made me feel like a valued member of the team. Their strong continuity of care and commitment to their patients was inspiring to witness. I got to see a diverse range of interesting heme/onc cases and pathologies. Despite their busy schedules, both Drs. Borowicz and Edwards took the time to teach and engage me in meaningful discussions on multiple heme/onc topics. I absolutely loved working on their service and am grateful for the opportunity to learn from such compassionate and committed physician role models.”
- (Attending) Vydia Permashwar, MBBS – “Dr. Permashwar was an exceptional mentor and role model during my time on service. Her personable, calm, and supportive demeanor created a welcoming learning environment where I always felt comfortable asking questions and seeking guidance. Even in tense situations, she remained composed and approachable, demonstrating excellent leadership and patient care skills. Her encouragement, patience, and constructive feedback made a lasting impact on my learning experience, and I truly appreciate her dedication to both education and teamwork. Beyond making a lasting impact on my role during the rotation, she exemplified what it truly means to be a healer, someone who sees, understands, and values all members of the patient care team and leads with compassion. In short, it was a privilege to work with Dr. Permashwar, and I would not hesitate to learn from her again in the future."
Psychiatry & Behavioral Medicine
- NA
Radiology
- NA
Surgery
- (Resident) Dylan Flood, MD – “was a standout among the residents and faculty. He made an effort to get to know the medical students which made for a stronger teacher-learner relationship. I felt engaged, and more importantly, I felt that he wanted to me to be engaged and part of the team. He taught me procedurally and academically, giving me resources and papers to look into. We were held accountable for everything he asked us to look into, and he made the effort to extend the learning opportunities beyond what we had suggested we look into.”
- (Resident) Adam Goode, MD – “encouraged us to think beyond diagnoses and to come up with assessments and plans for patients. Even if we didn't come up with the right plan at first, he asked guiding questions that prompted us to reach the correct thought process. He provided us with opportunities to practice patient presentations and outlined goals or learning takeaways for specific cases. He included the medical students whenever possible, allowing us to get additional hands-on experience. Throughout suturing or other procedures, he gave clear instructions about what to do and the best way to do it. In addition, Dr. Goode was excellent at providing direct feedback that included ways to improve. Working with Dr. Goode allowed us to gain confidence and maintain a learning/growth mindset.”
- (Resident) Derek Schaap, MD – “was exemplary when it came to teaching in an OR setting. He seemed to be always aware of the presence of the medical student and maximized the student's exposure time to the surgical site. He would ask me questions which would keep me engaged with the case, and he would answer any questions I had.”
- (Fellow) Chelsea Heisler, MD – “was an exceptional teacher that I had the pleasure to work with and learn from during my EGS rotation. She embodied a great physician and was an amazing role model during her interactions with the patients. She always listened to the patients and genuinely cared for them even though her schedule was very busy, she still made time for her patients. What meant the most to me was her encouragement when I was suturing and commenting on how I improved every time and mentioning that suturing is a skill that takes a lot of time and gave constructive criticism that I highly appreciate. Overall, she was one of the people that made the experience very enjoyable and memorable especially since that was my first orientation and made me leave it with a positive outlook. Finally, she listened carefully to my presentation and made me feel part of the team and wrote down some notes when I was presenting which made me feel even more involved in the care of the patient. I will use what I learned from her and take her interactions with the patients with me throughout my future career.”
- (Attending) Terry P. Nickerson, MD – “is amazing with his residents and staff, and even more so with his patients. He cultivates a safe and friendly environment for each participating member in the OR Also, he is hilarious and is tactful in the way he uses humor to lighten the mood. Furthermore, he is firm yet respectful and kind with the way that he delivers feedback to students and residents.”