KUTZTOWN, PA – Kevin McCloskey, professor of communication design, has been awarded the 2019 Arthur and Isabel Wiesenberger Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching. The award, given annually, is presented to a faculty member who has demonstrated outstanding teaching skills and service to Kutztown University. The award was presented at KU’s Faculty and Staff Convocation and Celebration Friday, Aug. 23.
McCloskey has been teaching at KU since 1989. He has created five children’s books in the past five years, all published by TOON Books, N.Y. Two of his recent titles have been selected by School Library Journal’s annual top 10 list of graphic books for children. He engages young readers and artists through his numerous author lectures given each year to primary school children.
McCloskey woodblock prints have been selected for inclusion in regional, national and international shows. His work has been showcased at the AFA Gallery in Scranton, Pa., the Espacio Zapata Gallery, Oaxaca, Mexico, and the Atelier International Gallery in Corpus Christi, Texas.
Continuing his interaction with alumni and the community, McCloskey uses his ongoing blog, Illustration Concentration, as a link between KU alumni and current students in the Department of Communication Design. The blog is in its 10th year.
McCloskey is active in the community, volunteers to review incoming freshmen portfolios and has served as a mentor to numerous colleagues and students.
He has led KU study abroad courses in England and Oaxaca, Mexico and also studied African Art and Design at Kwame Nkrumah University in Kumasi, Ghana, in 2001. McCloskey received two National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) fellowships to study in Mexico and the Social Equity award from the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE). He received an outstanding service award from the KU chapter of the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculty (APSCUF).
McCloskey earned a Master of Fine Arts in illustration from The School of Visual Arts, New York.
