If one of her students were to give Ruth Kershner an apple, she would probably say thank you and then explain the benefits of eating the fruit every day. A health professor at West VirginiaUniversity, Kershner has spent the past 12 years doling out such hearty tidbits to budding health care professionals and educators under her tutelage.


For her efforts, Kershner has been awarded the 2003 June Harless Award for Exceptional Teaching, one of WVU s premier teaching honors.


“The need for knowledgeable health care professionals grows as Americas population continues to gray,”said C.B. Wilson, associate provost for academic personnel and chairman of the award committee.”Dr. Kershners commitment to the health field and her students makes her the consummate educator.”


Kershner, a clinical assistant professor, joined the School of Medicines community medicine department in 1991. She is a registered nurse, West Virginia-certified in school health and nationally certified as a health education specialist.


She teaches courses in school and community health and serves as the alcohol educator for the School of Medicine. She is also a visiting assistant professor in the School of Physical Education and a faculty adjunct in the Center for Women’s Studies. Her teaching and research interests include substance abuse education, violence prevention, rape prevention education, womens health, nursing care of the elderly and hospice.


Kershner takes a holistic approach to health education.


“Some people believe that health is associated only with physical well-being,”she said.”The reality is that there exist many other facets of health, including social, emotional, spiritual, environmental and intellectual components. This holistic model serves as the framework for my classes.”


Her teaching philosophy centers around getting students involved in various activities to reinforce the subject matter.


“Every class has lecture and discussion, yet each class also features one or more learning opportunities that allow students to engage in purposeful activities to reinforce the content, examine values, resolve differences, reflect, think critically or explore issues from a broader perspective,”she said.


Kershner also encourages her students to become active in service learning. Service activities her students have been involved in include supplying personal care items for domestic violence shelters, writing letters to rescue workers in New York following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, and donating health supplies and education materials to Morgantown Health Right.


Active in the WVU community, Kershner is chair of the WVU Council for Women’s Concerns and a member of the Social Justice Committee, Drug and Alcohol Advisory Council, Sexual Assault Advisory Council, Faculty Senate Liberal Studies Committee and Professional Education Coordinating Council.


Other awards she has won include the 2002 West Virginia Health Education Teacher of the Year from the West Virginia Association of Health Physical Education, Recreation and Dance; 2001 Distinguished Teacher from the School of Medicine; and 2000 Health Advocacy Award from the Health Education Council of West Virginia.


She also works in the community as a volunteer nurse and with local groups involved in improving the health of West Virginians.


Kershner, who grew up in Hagerstown, Md., earned a masters degree in community and school health and a doctorate in curriculum and instruction with a focus on health education, both from WVU . She also has a nursing degree from Davis&ElkinsCollege. She was a public health and home health nurse in Spencer before coming to WVU .


On winning the Harless Award, she said it is an honor to be recognized for her teaching.


“Teaching is my passion,”said Kershner, who lives in Morgantown with her husband, Corky, and their son, Cody.”Perhaps it is related to my work as a health professional. The opportunity to impact and mentor patients and students is markedly similar. The truth is that what I put into teaching pales in comparison to what I get out of it.”


The June Harless Award is named for the late wife of James”Buck”Harless, a MingoCounty coal executive and a long-time supporter of WVU . It was made possible by a contribution from Gene A. Budig, WVU s 17th president and now a teacher at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at PrincetonUniversity. Candidates for the award are judged on success and achievements as a teacher.