Krystal Tsosie earns Centennial Professorship Award for mentorship and inclusive teaching

Krystal Tsosie has built her classroom around a simple idea: Students learn best when they feel connected to the material and empowered to shape the future of science themselves.

That approach recently earned the Arizona State University assistant professor the Centennial Professorship Award, a recognition honoring early-career faculty whose teaching and mentorship have made a significant impact on students.

For Tsosie, who teaches in the School of Life Sciences, the recognition feels especially meaningful because it came directly from students.

“I’m really more grateful for what it means for the students,” Tsosie said. “In the short time that I’ve been at ASU, a lot of my most rewarding experiences have been with students.”

The award nomination process included letters from students, many of whom collaborated to support her nomination. Tsosie said their enthusiasm reinforced the importance of building engaging, inclusive learning environments in science education.

In her BIO 340 course, Biology and Society, Tsosie uses hands-on activities and real-world examples to help students better understand complex topics surrounding biological data, ethics and technology. Rather than relying solely on lectures, she incorporates games and collaborative exercises that encourage students to actively participate in the learning process.

One classroom activity models genomic data sharing through collectible stickers and “rare Pokémon” analogies, helping students think critically about concepts like data surveillance and commercialization. The goal, she said, is to make large lecture courses feel more personal and interactive.

“How can we make this a little bit more engaging and a little bit more fun?” Tsosie said. “I’ve always enjoyed trying to make a large class size feel small.”

Her students also help shape the classroom experience. Many of the teaching assistants in her courses previously took her classes themselves and gave her direct feedback about what resonated and what could be improved.

That collaborative mindset extends into Tsosie’s mentoring philosophy. As a first-generation scholar who experienced challenging mentorship dynamics early in her own academic career, she said she is intentional about creating a different experience for her students.

“I don’t want to pass on the trauma,” Tsosie said. “It’s important to meet students where they’re at, especially if we want to uplift first-generation college students and increase inclusivity in STEM and data fields.”

Tsosie encourages students to think broadly about how science can serve communities and address real-world challenges. She has seen students pursue careers not only in research and academia, but also in law, genetic counseling, artificial intelligence and community-engaged science.

“I think a lot more students are realizing they can have direct human and community impact with their degrees,” she said.

As an Indigenous scientist and professor, Tsosie also brings perspectives on data sovereignty, ethics and governance into the classroom. She encourages students to think critically about who owns biological data, who benefits from it and how scientific work affects communities beyond the university.

“Students are really responsive to considering worldviews from different lived experiences,” Tsosie said. “If we want to build scientists who are more globally centered, we have to think about justice-centered and equity-centered approaches.”

Her emphasis on creativity and connection can also be seen outside the classroom. A growing collaborative quilt created by students is currently displayed in the Life Sciences C Wing between the first and second floors. The project combines science, art and social reflection, with students contributing pieces that explore the relationship between society and biology through their own artistic perspectives.

Each year, new students add to the quilt, creating an evolving representation of the ideas and conversations taking place in Tsosie’s classroom.

Along with the recognition, the Centennial Professorship Award includes funding to support classroom and student-focused improvements. Tsosie plans to use the award to enhance educational resources and learning spaces for students.

For her, the award ultimately reflects the kind of scientific community she hopes to help build at ASU — one rooted in curiosity, compassion and meaningful engagement.

“I think if we have more students with these citizen-centered approaches,” Tsosie said, “we have better people who are globally minded and more empathetic as contributors to society.”