Merle Schlabaugh, professor of German at Bethel College, North Newton, Kansas, received the Ralph P. Schrag Distinguished Teaching Award during commencement ceremonies at the school May 23.

The award is given to a faculty member judged to have made an outstanding contribution to teaching.

Schlabaugh, formerly of Kalona, has taught at Bethel since 1985. He received his Doctor of Arts Degree from the State University of New York at Stony Brook, New York in 1995 and earned the rank of professor in 1998.

He is chairman of the Language Department and Chairman of the Humanities and Fine Arts Division at the college, as well as the Study Abroad advisor.

In addition to his teaching and administrative responsibilities, Schlabaugh is active in the campus chapter of Amnesty International, the Kansas Association of Teachers of German, and serves as co-editor of the Kansas Foreign Language Association Bulletin.

He also has used his language competence in other ways at the college, including accompanying the college choir on its European tours in 1994 and 1998.