17
April
2014
|
13:58 PM
America/Chicago

UHD Award Ceremony Recognizes Outstanding Faculty Achievements

UHD hosted the 2014 Faculty Awards Ceremony this week to recognize individual professors for their excellence in teaching, service and scholarship/creative activity and honor this year's outstanding adjunct and lecturer.

UHD President Bill Flores congratulated all nominees for their commitment to the University and last year's faculty award winners presented plaques to the 2014 honorees.

The Faculty Awards Selection Committee, chaired by Associate Professor Brad Hoge, also included 2013 faculty award recipients Robin Davidson, Poonam Gulati, Nancy Lopez and Branden Kuzmick.

"It is an honor to be recognized by our peers, but even more to have the opportunity to represent all of the great teaching that takes place at UHD," said Hoge, chairman of the Faculty Awards Selection Committee.

Excellence in Teaching

Hoge presented this year's Excellence in Teaching award to two professors - Jerry Johnson, associate professor of natural sciences, and Andrew Pavelich, associate professor of social sciences.

"My drive for excellence in teaching is motivated by three factors: my belief in the value of a strong liberal arts education, the recognition of the qualities and skill sets that students must acquire in order to be successful, and best practices in current pedagogical theory," said Johnson.

In discussing his teaching philosophy, Pavelich noted, "I love our students and the diversity and maturity they bring to the classroom. In the classroom, I try to think about what my students will remember in 10 years and I hope they take away the careful thought and inquisitiveness that philosophy is all about."

Excellence in Service

Gulati presented Carolyn Ashe, professor of management, marketing and business administration, with the 2014 Excellence in Service Award.

In speaking of her own commitment to service, Ashe said, "Extending beyond the classroom broadens my exposure to other audiences and encourages additional preparation that will at the same time benefit my students, colleagues and profession. My overall service philosophy is embedded within this fourfold framework: service to the University, to the student, to the profession, and to the community."

Johnson and Susan Henney, associate professor of social sciences, were named finalists for the Excellence in Service award.

Excellence in Scholarly/Creative Activity

Davidson presented Ashley Blackburn, associate professor of criminal justice, with this year's Excellence in Scholarly/Creative Activity.

In addressing the topic of research, Blackburn said, "Our disciplines do not grow without scholarship. I don't feel that, as a scholar, one can grow if they are not actively participating in research. Therefore, having an active research agenda has been and will continue to be a significant part of my academic career.

Ken Johnson, associate professor of natural sciences, and Chu Nguyen, assistant professor of finance, accounting and CIS, were named finalists for this award.

Outstanding Lecturer

Kuzmick presented Phyllis Griffard, lecturer of natural sciences, with the 2014 Outstanding Lecturer award. She described her definition of learning as "a change in the quality of one's experience of the world, and teaching as any activity that leads to that kind of meaningful learning. It's one thing to teach biology concepts that a student can parrot back perfectly, and another entirely for learners to see them happening before their very eyes in their everyday lives."

Catherine Howard, lecturer of English, was named finalist for this award.

Outstanding Adjunct

Nancy Lopez, adjunct professor of social sciences, presented Carrie Cutler, adjunct professor of urban education, with the 2014 Outstanding Adjunct award. In describing her motivation, Cutler said, "Because I know my students will mirror my teaching methods, I model principles of child development and child-centered teaching practices in our UHD classroom. I love seeing students fully engaged in hands-on, minds-on learning."

Meghan Minard, adjunct professor of natural sciences, was named finalist for this award.

Additional Faculty Awards

During the ceremony, Associate Professors Mian Jiang, Mohsen Mobasher, JoAnn Pavletich and Joseph Westfall were awarded University-funded, faculty development leaves.

UHD also recognized the following faculty members with longevity awards:

20 Years:

• Yvonne Kendall, professor of music

• Tyra Montgomery, associate professor of chemistry

• Bonnie Nadler-Blumberg, lecturer of mathematics

• Edwin Padilla, associate professor of Spanish

• Charles Strain, associate professor of marketing

25 Years:

• Gary Jackson, professor of management, marketing and business administration

• Branden Kuzmick, lecturer in University College

• James McCaffrey, professor of history

30 Years:

• Samuel Penkar, professor of finance

• Darshan Wadhwa, professor of accounting

• Deloris McGee Wanguri, professor of communications

40 Years:

• Kenneth Oberhoff, associate professor of mathematics

45 Years:

• Carol Vobach, associate professor of mathematics

faculty awards 2014