Mack Mariani Named 2023 AΣN Teacher of the Year

May 3, 2023

It you ever find yourself looking for Xavier Professor Mack Mariani, Ph.D., you won’t have to look far.
 
Mariani often holds his office hours in Gallagher Student Center – one the most common student gathering spaces on campus – to make himself more easily accessible to his students.
 
As a political science professor, Mariani is known to engage his students on several discussion topics, mostly related to life inside and outside of the classroom. He challenges them to not only think about how ideas and institutions shape the world around them, but to take what they learn in class and apply it to real world situations.
 
Mariani’s student-centered, mission-based approach to education is of the reasons he was honored as Xavier’s 2023 Alpha Sigma Nu Teacher of the Year.
 
“There are probably 100 of my colleagues who are equally or more deserving of the honor,” Mariani said. “I’ve been lucky to work with great teachers throughout my time at Xavier. I’ve had great role models, inside and outside of my department.”
 
Alpha Sigma Nu is a national honor society exclusive to Jesuit Catholic institutions of higher learning. Xavier students who distinguish themselves on campus through the three tenants of scholarship, loyalty and service are selected to become AΣN members.
 
The Alpha Sigma Nu Teacher of the Year Award has been given to a Xavier professor every year since 1980. Students inducted into AΣN vote on the teacher of the year award annually.
 
“The fact that this award was selected by students means a lot,” Mariani said. “When you have students who are engaged and passionate about ideas, it makes the job feel easy.”
 
Before joining Xavier’s Department of Political Science in 2007, Mariani spent 15 years in the political sector. Mariani rose from congressional intern to district director under then-U.S. Rep. Bill Paxton in the mid-90s. He went on to hold several administrative positions in politics, including Chief of Staff for the Majority Office of the Monroe County Legislature in Rochester, NY and speech writer for Monroe County Executive Maggie Brooks in 2005.
 
“That experience (in the political sector) helped shape my approach to teaching,” Mariani said.
 
Mariani has served on numerous committees and held multiple roles throughout his 16-year tenure at Xavier. He served as the Political Science Department Chair from 2014-2020 and in 2022, he was appointed Faculty Director for Take It On – the University’s non-partisan, values-centered initiative to proactively promote better civic discourse and robust, peaceful engagement in politics.
 
A Buffalo, NY native, Mariani earned his bachelor’s degree in political science from Canisius College in 1991 and his master’s degree in political science from Syracuse University in 1992. Mariani earned his doctorate in political science from Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs in 2006.
 
Mariani said the best part about teaching at Xavier has been working with students.
 
“Their generation takes a lot of criticism, but I think they are light years ahead of where my generation was when we were the same age,” Mariani said. “In the classroom, they are creative and thoughtful and kind to one another. And they enjoy being with each other and talking about things that matter. The fact that they can do all of this while navigating the distractions of modern life is truly astounding.”