Award recognizes exemplary teaching and service on each UMass campus
UMass Dartmouth Associate Professor Jeremiah Ho has been awarded the 2020 Manning Prize for Excellence in Teaching for his outstanding dedication to students and the university. The faculty members — one from each UMass campus — will receive $10,000 awards in recognition of their sustained excellence in teaching and exemplary contributions to the campus community. Ho, who teaches at UMass Law, joined the University in 2012.
The Manning Prize was established in 2016 by UMass Lowell alumni Rob and Donna Manning to honor UMass professors who excel in teaching and service. “Donna and I are proud to recognize these five faculty members for their skill, passion and extraordinary commitment to students,” said Rob Manning, a 1984 graduate of UMass Lowell. “Faculty are the heart and soul of this great university, and we thank these talented educators for going above and beyond to enrich their campus communities and help students reach their full potential.”
Rob Manning, who is executive chairman of MFS Investment Management and chairman of the UMass Board of Trustees, credits UMass Lowell math professor Bernie Shapiro with helping him land the job that launched his career. Donna Manning, who received her nursing degree and her master of business administration from UMass Lowell, was an oncology nurse at Boston Medical Center for more than 30 years until her retirement in 2018. They are among the largest contributors to UMass in its history.
“We’re so thankful to Rob and Donna Manning for their generous support of our faculty, who make UMass the world-class university it is today,” said UMass President Marty Meehan. “These faculty members inspire and empower students both in and out of the classroom, so this is a wonderful recognition of their efforts.”
Ho teaches Contracts, Trusts & Estates, Remedies, Products Liability, and Law Review Note Writing and writes about law and inequality, exploring such issues mostly concerning sexuality, race, and culture. He also writes extensively on legal education, methodology, and theory. Ho has won the respect and admiration of students and faculty colleagues alike. Letters of support consistently praise his energy and optimism as well as his dedication to student research, writing, and professional success.
“This recognition from Mr. and Mrs. Manning, UMass Dartmouth, and the UMass system is tremendous. I’m honored to teach at the first and only public law school in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts,” said Associate Professor of Law Jeremiah Ho. “I dedicate this prize to my students and all of the remarkable teachers who have influenced me.”
In 2014, Ho was selected for Lawyers of Color’s 50 Law Professors Under 50. He has also received the Professor of the Year Award four times at UMass Law in 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019. Recently, Professor Ho’s TEDx-style talk on law teaching was recorded at American University, Washington College of Law, and is part of a curated series at LegalED. He has also been interviewed previously by NPR for his views on legal education. Since 2013, he has been a contributing faculty member at the Institute for Law Teaching and Learning.
“Professor Ho is an incredible educator and advocate for our students and the work they do to help the communities we serve as the Commonwealth’s only public law school,” said UMass Law Dean Eric Mitnick. “I am so glad Professor Ho and his approach to legal education have been recognized with this award.”