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Both colleagues and students alike find Rick Asher an extraordinary teacher and scholar. Hallmarks of his teaching are his genuine caring for and encouragement of students and his accessibility. It is not unusual for him to be available to students on early mornings, evenings, and weekends.

Asher is respectful of students and puts them at ease. His teaching style is designed to engage students’ critical thinking and to question everything instead of memorizing facts. A student says, “He made such a point in urging us to ask questions…that even I, a student who rarely asks things, talked freely during discussions.”

With a keen interest in curriculum development, Asher, along with four graduate students, created an introductory art history class, Why Art Matters, which emphasizes the powerful impact that visual works can have on human thought.

Asher’s area of expertise is South Asia, and he is an internationally renowned scholar in the art of India. He travels extensively in India every year to enhance his scholarly activities and his teaching.

Even though his students find him an exemplary teacher, Asher has solicited critiques of his teaching skills from the Center for Teaching and Learning Services—to be the best teacher he can possibly be.

A student says, “He has been the first, and perhaps the only, professor I have met who has harmonized his passion for the subject with his passion for helping people to learn.”