LeBow PhD Candidates Win Teaching Assistant Excellence Awards

Drexel LeBow PhD candidates Alex Cohen and Hoori Rafieian Koopaei have won Teaching Assistant Excellence awards given by Drexel’s Graduate College. They were recognized at the annual Graduate Student Day ceremony and will take part in TA Orientation activities in the fall. Alex and Hoori were chosen from over 500 candidates nominated by students, faculty and staff. The award recognizes those who go above and beyond in their roles as teaching assistants.

Hoori, who teaches MKTG 301 and MKTG 201, says the award is a great honor: “As a student from Iran, it was hard in the beginning for me to overcome my stress of communicating with my students in a language other than my mother tongue. Looking back at the stressful experience I had last year teaching for the first time, this award shows, to myself for the most part, that I have come a long way. I feel proud and honored.”

Hoori’s main area of research is consumer behavior. She’s specifically interested in exploring ways to help consumers achieve their goals, whether they be to save money, lose weight or complete another task.

Alex teaches MKTG 364 independently and is a teaching assistant in MKTG 321 with professor of marketing Rolph Anderson. “I put so much effort into preparing for each class, and giving it all I have to give when I’m in front of my students. The fact that they would nominate me for this award not only validates all of my hard work, but it also makes me feel that they truly appreciate my unique style while knowing how much I care about their future success,” Alex says. His research focuses on creating a more inclusive marketplace both online and offline for the disabled community.