Franklin University Announces Fall 2025 Robert L. Bailey Teaching Award Recipients

Contact:

Chelsey Lloyd
Associate Director of Public Relations
(614) 947-6047
Email: chelsey.lloyd@franklin.edu

Contact:

Sherry Mercurio
Executive Director, Office of Community Relations
(614) 947-6581
Email: sherry.mercurio@franklin.edu

As Franklin University proudly celebrates its 181st Commencement on Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, at 2 p.m. (ET), the University honors the dedicated educators who play a pivotal role in the success of its graduates. Congratulations to this trimester’s Robert L. Bailey Teaching Award recipients, Dr. David E. Weirich and Stephanie Thomas, who exemplify Franklin’s commitment to providing impactful and personalized education to working adults.

Graduate Bailey Award Winner
Dr. David E. Weirich teaches in the graduate data analytics program at Franklin University. His teaching style encourages students to connect theory with real-world data science applications through hands-on projects. He is passionate about inspiring students to become excellent communicators and critical thinkers. Outside academia, David has worked as a data scientist at a variety of start-ups and large companies for over a decade. He holds a doctorate and a master’s degree from the University of New Mexico and a bachelor’s from Virginia Wesleyan College. His research in abstract harmonic analysis has been published in journals such as the New York Journal of Mathematics and the Journal of Number Theory. In his free time, David plays piano with The Jay Birds, a jazz band that performs at small venues around Columbus.

Undergraduate Bailey Award Winner
Stephanie Thomas is an experienced science educator and geoscientist with over two decades of teaching across secondary, college and online settings. Stephanie has been a Franklin University adjunct professor since 2011, teaching undergraduate courses in geology and critical thinking in science. Holding a master’s in geological sciences with a concentration in geophysics and a teaching certificate in Earth science, she brings expertise in geology, geophysics and STEM education. Her career includes middle and high school instruction, adjunct faculty roles, and international English language teaching, demonstrating a breadth of experience in both traditional and virtual classrooms.

Explore Excellence in Teaching
Watch this trimester's Robert L. Bailey Teaching Award recipients share their inspiring acceptance speeches here: franklin.edu/commencement.

About the Robert L. Bailey Teaching Award
Each trimester, two faculty members are honored with the Robert L. Bailey Teaching Award. Graduating students are asked to identify one undergraduate and one graduate faculty member who had the most significant influence on them throughout their educational experience at Franklin University. The award recognizes those who have challenged students intellectually and guided them in finding the significance of the course content as it relates to them both personally and professionally.

While more than 100 graduate and undergraduate faculty members are nominated each trimester – clearly showing the magnitude of interaction between students and faculty at Franklin University – the faculty members receiving the most nominations are awarded this honor.

These awards are funded through an endowment established by State Auto Insurance Companies in recognition of Robert L. Bailey, who served State Auto for 28 years in various positions, including President, CEO, and Chairman, until his retirement in 2000. Bailey is also a past Chair and a Trustee Emeritus of Franklin University’s Board of Trustees.

About Franklin University

Accredited, nonprofit, and dedicated to educating adults since 1902, Franklin provides onsite course options at our Main Campus in downtown Columbus, Ohio, and is an innovator in providing personalized online education. The University offers applied in-demand undergraduate, masters, and doctorate programs that enable adult learners to achieve their educational and professional goals. Through agreements with partner institutions, the University also offers international academic programs, including its top-ranked MBA.

Franklin University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and holds specialized accreditations for specific academic programs through the International Accreditation Council for Business Education, the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation, and the Commission on Accreditation of Health Informatics and Information Management Education. The National Security Agency and the Department of Homeland Security have designated Franklin University as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education (CAE-CDE).