The College of Liberal and Professional Studies congratulates Jane Dmochowski, Simon Tong, and Claire Robertson-Kraft for being named 2026 distinguished teaching award winners.
Dean’s Award for Distinguished Teaching by Affiliated Faculty
Jane Dmochowski, PhD
Senior Lecturer, Earth and Environmental Science; Instructor, Penn LPS Online
Dr. Jane Dmochowski began teaching at the University of Pennsylvania in 2006 and currently is a senior lecturer in the Earth and Environmental Science Department. She’s taught math and physics at the high school level in California and New Jersey and college classes in earth science, environmental chemistry, oceanography, environmental case studies, research methods, and remote sensing. Jane’s past earth science research experience has spanned paleomagnetics and recent tectonics (during her BS at UC Santa Barbara), magnetic paleointensity, earthquakes, plate tectonics, volcanism, marine seismology, and remote sensing (during her MS and PhD at Caltech), to global seismology (fellowship in Brazil). Her current research at Penn investigates vegetation’s response to climate change using remote sensing imagery. Jane is passionate about the oceans, the environment, science education, teaching, and earth science.
Liberal and Professional Studies Award for Distinguished Teaching in Undergraduate and Post-Baccalaureate Programs
Simon Tong, PhD
Lecturer and Advisor, Pre-Health Programs; Instructor, Penn LPS Online
Dr. Simon Tong joined the College of Liberal and Professional Studies as a lecturer and advisor in 2020. He currently teaches organic chemistry lectures and labs for the Pre-Health Programs and has also started teaching chemistry for Penn LPS Online. Simon earned both a BS in pharmacology and a PhD in chemistry from Stony Brook University. His PhD research involved designing and synthesizing anti-tubercular agents and anti-nociceptive agents as potential drugs to treat tuberculosis and manage pain.
During most of his undergraduate and graduate career, Simon was deeply involved in teaching organic chemistry and held many roles, ranging from teaching assistant to lecturer. He found a love for teaching and immensely enjoyed interacting with students while teaching them his favorite subject. After graduating with his doctorate in 2016, Simon pursued a career in teaching as a lecturer at Binghamton University. In his four years at Binghamton University, he taught classes of varying sizes, with small classes containing 40 students and large classes containing almost 900 students. He did as much learning as he did teaching!
Now a part of Penn, Simon continues to enjoy interacting with students while teaching his favorite subject. He hopes to use his enthusiasm and experience to garner more appreciation for all chemistry courses.
Liberal and Professional Studies Award for Distinguished Teaching in Professional Graduate Programs
Claire Robertson-Kraft, PhD
Core Instructor and Faculty Co-Director of the Executive MPA Program, Fels Institute of Government; Founder and Director, ImpactED
Dr. Claire Robertson-Kraft is the founder and executive director of ImpactED and the faculty co-director at Fels Institute of Government at the University of Pennsylvania. She has more than twenty years of experience working as a teacher, evaluator, and nonprofit leader in the Philadelphia region. She has extensive experience teaching research methods and conducting evaluations in the areas of education, public policy, positive psychology, social impact, and community engagement.
Claire began her career as a third-grade teacher with Teach For America in Houston, which is where she discovered her passion for teaching. Currently, she teaches Quantitative Methods for Policy Analysis, Program Evaluation, and capstone courses at the Fels Institute of Government and Education Policy Issues at the Graduate School of Education. She is passionate about bridging the worlds of research and practice. In 2009, she edited A Grand Bargain for Education Reform (Harvard Education Press), which provided practitioners with research-based strategies for implementing new teacher policies in urban schools. Since then, she has worked with numerous organizations in the Philadelphia region to evaluate their impact and use data to inform organizational improvement.
Claire is also very active in the Philadelphia civic community, serving as the vice-chair of the Philadelphia Outward Bound School Board and as the former board chair of Russell Byers Charter School, co-founder and former president of PhillyCORE Leaders, former board chair of Young Involved Philadelphia, and on the boards of YouthBuild Philadelphia and Leadership Philadelphia. She was recognized as one of the New Faces of Philly in 2011, an Emerging Leader with the Forum for Executive Women, and a Leadership Philadelphia Connector and Keeper in 2014.
Claire holds a BA in urban studies and philosophy and a PhD in education policy, both from the University of Pennsylvania. When she’s not teaching or helping organizations measure their impact, you can find her swimming at Pottruck, biking on Kelly Drive, or eating out at one of the many delicious restaurants in her South Philly neighborhood.
