Professor Kristy Doran, PhD Receives 5-Star Teaching Award
Dr. Kristy Doran, 2025 5-Star Teaching Awardee, alongside Dr. Dennis T. Ray, Dr. Margaret M. Briehl and students from the award's selection committee.
The W.A. Franke Honors College is thrilled to recognize Dr. Kristy Doran as the winner of the University of Arizona's 2025 5-Star Teaching Award. This award, funded by donors Dr. Margaret M. Briehl and Dr. Dennis T. Ray, is the only student-selected award that recognizes excellence in teaching across The University of Arizona.
Dr. Kristin Doran is an Associate Professor of Practice in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese at the University of Arizona. She is a Faculty Affiliate in Latin American Studies, a member of the W.A. Franke Honors College Faculty Advisory Board, and serves as the departmental liaison for the college. She received her PhD in Spanish and Luso-Brazilian Literature from the University of Arizona. In Spring 2021, Dr. Doran was the recipient of the College of Humanities Distinguished Undergraduate Advising and Mentoring Award.
Dr. Doran’s passion for student success and experiential learning is a driving force in her teaching and service philosophy. For the last 25 years, she has dedicated herself to the academic, personal, and professional well-being of her students. In the classroom, she promotes a collaborative environment that creates a sense of community. Her areas of interest and research focus on using a combination of learning methods, including project-based, reflective, and inquiry-based approaches.
Get to know Dr. Doran through her glowing nominations:
Profe Doran is the best instructor I have had at U of A. Unlike many other classes, which are high stakes situations, Profe Doran always removes the stress by always making herself available as a resource to her students, both academically and in general. Her classes are very interactive, and she employs different modes of learning, including drawing, acting, and multimedia aside from traditional lectures. She also provides a very immersive experience, encouraging students to speak in Spanish even if they may make mistakes, as that is the best way to learn.
Dr. Doran is by far the most supportive teacher and mentor I have ever encountered. She is clear with her expectations, but is also understanding and supportive when unexpected situations occur. She encourages out-of-the-box thinking and using creative ways to think critically. She has accomplished being the perfect balance of structure, support, and engaging.
Dr. Doran makes classes so engaging by including students in the discussion instead of just lecturing to them. It is also very clear that she cares about each student very much. Each class period, she sets aside time for photos of the week, which allows students to send in pictures, and then the class gets to know the students better. Dr. Doran also made her classroom so welcoming, and she had such an upbeat energy at every single class.
Profe Doran's teaching is thoughtful, innovative, and engaging. I could tell that she put lots of time and effort into developing lesson plans that engaged her students. She taught the curriculum in a way that captivated our interest and kept us on our feet. I believe she should be recognized with this award because she has made a lasting impact on me as a student, leaving me with a much better command of the Spanish language and a mentor that I will have for life.
I believe Dr. Doran should be nominated for this award because she has accomplished what few other professors I have met have been able to: she works
hard to not only instruct, but also support, care about, and mentor. She truly does it all. I, as a student and mentee, have never felt as supported as I have when I am working with Dr. Doran.
Dr. Doran is a great teacher and she incorporates real-life examples into her teachings. However, what is even better in my opinion is the care she has for her students. She sets an expectation in her classroom that she is there for each and every student. She makes it her goal to connect to students and help them connect to each other. When she sets up her seating chart she looks into details of each student and pairs them up accordingly which lead to me making some of my best friends in her class.
Profe Doran was a collegiate athlete, and I am currently a collegiate athlete. She understands many of the challenges I face in my day to day life and made a conscious effort to relate to me and make my life easier rather than more painstaking. She also inspired me to study abroad in Barcelona, which turned out to be one of the most valuable experiences in my life. Her passion for the Spanish language and Spanish culture really shines through her courses, inspiring decisions such as mine and furthering students' love for the language.
Dr. Doran has been the most important mentor to me in my college experience so far. I took her course two years ago and I still regularly visit her to catch up or ask for advice if I need it. Every time I go to her office she always has multiple other students who are also there to talk to her. She creates such a open environment and she wants to help as many students as she can. She recently told me that after finding out a few of her students were struggling to make friends she connected them and introduced them to each other creating an opportunity for friendship.
When I asked for an honors contract in my SPAN 350 class, Profe Doran was happy to help me out. She also challenged me to explore a medium that I wasn't really comfortable with -- video production. I was definitely nervous for it at first, but she made the process so much smoother by checking in with me frequently and being available as a resource to help me get what I needed to complete the project. I ended up surprising myself with what I was able to do, and I have gained a valuable skill that I'll be able to apply throughout my life.
During my first year of college, I was dealing with a difficult roommate situation, and I had no idea where to get advice about it. After class one day I realized that Dr. Doran would probably have some great advice about the situation. I approached her after class and she immediately jumped in to try to help me. She set up a time for me to come to her office, and she let me explain everything to her. She was so caring and helpful in getting the information I needed to solve my issue and I am forever grateful that Dr. Doran made herself approachable to me, and she was
After being at the University of Arizona for 3 1/2 years now and working with Dr. Doran for about a year, I can confidently say that she is the best mentor I have ever had. Not only is she a phenomenal mentor, but she is also a kind person that treats everyone with kindness and respect.
She has become my role-model for how I want to be as a professor one day. As my thesis mentor, she has helped me brainstorm project ideas, taught me how to create a timeline, introduced me to new resources, and supported me every step of the way. She not only values my work academically, but also respects me as a person. She has even gone above and beyond for me by going out of her way to help me resolve a problem I encountered outside of our direct work together.