Professional Affiliations
- American Academy of Religion (AAR)
- International Comparative Literature Association (ICLA)
- American Psychological Association (APA)
- American Scientific Affiliation (ASA)
- Association of Educational Communications Technologies (AECT)
- International Linguistics Association (ILA)
- National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS)
- National Middle Level Science Teachers Association (NMLSTA)
- National Science Teaching Association (NSTA)
- North American Scholastic ESports Federation (NASEF)
- Søren Kierkegaard Society USA
- Teachers of English as a Second or Other Language, International (TESOL)
- The World History Association
Honors and Grants
- Certificate of Appreciation for Contributions to Ecotourism for Sustainable Development, General Secretary of Parliament, Kyrgyz Republic (2020)
- Center for Research on Developmental Education and Urban Literacy Grant for Educational Innovation. Minneapolis, Minnesota: University of Minnesota (2002)
- Teacher of the Year, Somali Student Association, Minneapolis Community and Technical College (2003)
- Teacher of the Year, Muslim Student Organization, Minneapolis Community and Technical College (2002)
- Teacher of the Year, East African Christian Students’ Organization, Minneapolis Community and Technical College (2001)
- Project Mindquest Online Developmental Education Fellow, Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (2001)
- Applied Technology in Education Award and Grant, Electronic Academy, Minneapolis, Minnesota: Minneapolis Community and Technical College (2001)
- Applied Technology in Education Grant, Electronic Academy, Minneapolis, Minnesota: Minneapolis Community and Technical College (2000)
- Curriculum Innovation Grant, Minneapolis, Minnesota: Minneapolis Community and Technical College (2000)
- Presidential Letter of Commendation, Pyatigorsk State University (1997)
- Graduate Departmental Fellowship, University of Minnesota (1994)
- Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society (1993)
- Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society (1993)
- Colorado State University Honors Scholarship (1992)
- President’s Leadership Class, Colorado State University (1989)