Dr. Sonja Trent-Brown of the Hope College psychology faculty has been presented the 48th “Hope Outstanding Professor Educator” (H.O.P.E.) Award by the graduating Class of 2012.

She was named the recipient during the college’s Commencement ceremony, held at the DeVos Fieldhouse on Sunday, May 6.

The award, first given in 1965, is presented by the graduating class to the professor who they feel epitomizes the best qualities of the Hope College educator.

Trent-Brown has been a member of the Hope faculty since 2005 and is an associate professor of psychology.  She is known on campus as an outstanding teacher and research mentor, and in January of this year received the college’s “Janet L. Andersen Excellence in Teaching Award.”

Her research interests include psychoacoustics and cognitive development, and she has involved multiple students in collaborative research.  In the spring of 2010, she and her student research team received the college’s inaugural “Social Sciences Young Investigators Award” for their project “Survey of Psychological Services Requested by the Public in Various Medical Settings.”  She has also supervised several students in independent projects.

In addition to her teaching and research, Trent-Brown is faculty advisor for Hope’s Black Student Union (BSU), and has been a presenter in the college’s Teaching Enhancement Workshop for new faculty.  In August 2010, she was the featured speaker during the college’s Opening Convocation for the 2010-11 academic year.

Among other activity on campus, in January 2010 she presented the seminar “Who Is It?  Voice Quality and Speaker Identification” during the annual Winter Happening coordinated by the college’s office of public and community relations.  She was also among the faculty profiled in the “Hope People” section of the college’s 2010-11 “Catalog.”

She has been on a sabbatical leave during the 2011-12 academic year.

Trent-Brown graduated from Harvard/Radcliffe University in 1989.  She completed her master’s and doctorate at the University of South Florida in 1997 and 2004 respectively.