Nova J.
Silvy
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Year Awarded: 2015
Nova Silvy, Regents Professor, Senior Faculty Fellow, and associate department head for undergraduate programs in the Department of Wildlife & Fisheries Sciences, has been a faculty member in the College of Agriculture & Life Sciences since earning his Ph.D. from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale in 1975. Over his 40 years of service to Texas A&M University, Nova Silvy has authored more than 280 refereed publications and contributed to the understanding of more than 100 wildlife species. Undoubtedly, he has made an impression in the wildlife profession. Dr. Silvy firmly believes that both undergraduate and graduate education are integral to a university research program. He also believes a quality education begins with the involvement of students in field research. This philosophy has empowered hundreds of undergraduates and more than 100 graduate students through field experiences and “hands-on” training. Here’s what some of them have to say. “Nova was always available within and outside work hours.… He always treated his graduate students as equals and as a result, promoted their professional development. He never needed to demand excellence—his students were always willing to give him their best effort.” “Dr. Silvy simply led by example. He personally demonstrated what a good ethical scientist is all about on a daily basis.” “His guidance not only was critical to my success in graduate school, but also prepared me well for professional achievement. The fact that he can offer individualized guidance while routinely directing 15-18 graduate students is nothing less than amazing.” Ultimately Dr. Silvy’s impact will be seen in years to come the accomplishments of the next generation of wildlife scientists.
College: College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Award Level: Teaching
Vijay P.
Singh
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Year Awarded: 2015
Vijay Singh is a professor and the inaugural holder of the Caroline and William N. Lehrer Distinguished Chair in Water Engineering in the Department of Biological & Agricultural Engineering. He joined the faculty of the College of Agriculture & Life Sciences in 2006. He earned his Ph.D. from Colorado State University and his D.Sc. from the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa. A world-renowned hydrologist in the area of water resources engineering, he is recognized for his seminal contributions in several key areas, including: watershed modeling, floods and droughts, entropy theory-based modeling, copula-based analysis, risk and reliability analysis, and climate change impacts on water resources. With more than 700 refereed journal articles, 23 books, another 55 edited books, and 80 book chapters, his scholarly contributions have immensely impacted water research and education globally. Dr. Singh has received more than 60 national and international awards for his contributions and professional service, including the Arid Lands Hydraulic Engineering Award; the Torrens Award, the Norman Medal, and the Vent Te Chow Award of the American Society of Civil Engineers; and the R.K. Linsley Award and Founders Award of the American Institute of Hydrology. A supporter writes, “Prof. Singh is always far ahead of his time with interesting and profound ideas which have had a significant impact on the direction and practice of hydrology and water resources. His long contribution to the body of knowledge is stunning.” Another supporter sums up, writing “I truly believe that…when we assess the creative thinkers and doers of this generation of hydrologic engineers that Dr. Singh's name will be among the elite. He is certainly known and respected by everyone currently in the field of hydrologic analysis and design.”
College: College of Engineering
Award Level: Research
Ching-Yun
Suen
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Year Awarded: 2015
Ching-Yun Suen earned his Ph.D. from the University of Houston. After teaching there and at Texas A&M University, he joined the faculty of Texas A&M at Galveston in 1984. His outstanding reputation as a teacher stems from his deep commitment to the teaching profession and his lasting influence on his students. Dr. Suen is loved by his students. He is known for treating them with respect and devotion. A former department head writes that there were always students coming to Dr. Suen’s office and that he spent endless hours helping them to understand mathematics. A colleague adds that Dr. Suen brings “enthusiasm into all his classes” as evidenced by his excellent course evaluations and glowing comments from students. A former student commented that he remembers how much he “enjoyed his class and how easy he made understanding calculus.” But perhaps the most touching endorsement is that of a former student who wrote a strong letter of support for Dr. Suen despite the fact that she was just released from the hospital following a second heart transplant. During her freshman year, the student was diagnosed with heart failure and could not attend classes. She was given “incompletes” in most of her courses, but her Calculus I professor required her to take the final exam. Although not the professor in question, Dr. Suen volunteered to tutor her three times a week for four weeks at her parents’ home, which required him to travel from Galveston to Sugar Land, Texas, each time. With his help, she passed the course and ultimately graduated. She writes, “He went above and beyond to help a student like me with special circumstances, and I know I would not have passed the final exam without his help. He is a very generous, kind and caring teacher.” A colleague sums up, saying, “Dr. Suen is an outstanding teacher and a valued member of our department.”
College: Texas A&M Galveston-General Academics
Award Level: Teaching
Haiyan
Wang
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Year Awarded: 2015
Haiyan Wang is a professor in the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, who currently works part time at the National Science Foundation (NSF) as a program director in the Division of Materials Research. She joined the faculty of the Dwight Look College of Engineering in 2006 after earning her Ph.D. from North Carolina State University and completing a postdoctoral fellowship at the Los Alamos National Laboratory. Dr. Wang’s research covers a wide range of topics in ceramic thin film and materials science, including: high temperature superconductors, solid oxide fuel cells, nuclear radiation-tolerant materials, and batteries and thin film devices, all related to energy research. She has published more than 300 journal articles in prestigious journals, presented 150 invited talks at international conferences and holds 8 patents in the areas of thin film processing and architectures. She has been cited more than 6,500 times with an H-index of 39. She is a fellow of the ASM International. Her awards and recognitions include the TAMEST O’Donnell Award in Engineering, an ASM International Silver Medal Award for Outstanding Mid-Career Materials Scientist, an NSF Career Award, the Presidential Early Career Award, and an Office of Naval Research Young Investigator Award. Her nominator comments that “…Professor Wang has strongly demonstrated her exceptional abilities as a teacher, engineer, and scientist.” Other supporters add, “Dr. Wang is unquestionably an outstanding scientist with exceptional skills and extraordinary achievements in the areas of electronic materials and nanotechnology,” and she is well known as a “stellar researcher and leader in the ceramic field. Without any doubt, she will continue to make great contributions to our society!”
College: College of Engineering
Award Level: Research
Mark E.
Westhusin '83
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Year Awarded: 2015
Mark Westhusin is a professor in the Department of Veterinary Physiology & Pharmacology, joining the faculty of the College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences in 1992. He earned his Ph.D. from Texas A&M University. His research program has successfully cloned bulls, goats, the world's first cat and first white-tailed deer. As a result of his and his colleagues’ efforts, Texas A&M is now recognized as having cloned more different animal species than any other institution in the world (6 species - cow, goat, pig, horse, cat, white-tailed deer). The goal of all this once futuristic and now mainstream activity is to produce genetic copies of world-class animals and genetically engineer livestock with improved production characteristics, such as increased muscle development and resistance to disease. Dr. Westhusin has received numerous honors, including the National Institutes of Health Director’s Award, the American Society of Animal Sciences Scholarship Award, Pfizer Research Award, and Richard H. Davis Teaching Award. He was picked as one of Texas Monthly’s “35 People who Will Shape Our Future.” He has authored more than 75 scientific publications in prestigious journals, given more than 60 invited talks through the world, and contributed to several books. Here are a few comments from his supporters. “Mark has been at the forefront of developing and applying reproductive technologies to real world problems.” “Dr. Westhusin has an excellent and balanced record with strengths in multiple areas including research publications and extramural funding, excellent teaching skills in both the classroom setting and individual mentoring, and a high level of collegiality as supported by his multiple collaborative projects.” “Dr. Westhusin has clearly changed the world with his research and will continue to do so for a very long time.”
College: College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
Award Level: Research
Kirk O.
Winemiller
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Year Awarded: 2015
Kirk Winemiller is Regents Professor in the Department of Wildlife & Fisheries Sciences. Earning his Ph.D. from the University of Texas—Austin, he joined the faculty of the College of Agriculture & Life Sciences in 1992. He has published more than 200 papers and has been cited nearly 11,000 times. His research focuses on enhancing understanding of populations and communities of freshwater and estuarine fishes and has contributed significantly to the development of food web theory in basic ecological research. He has applied this research to enhancing the management and conservation of these fisheries in Texas and around the world. He has received a number of very significant honors, including the Vice Chancellor’s Graduate Teaching Award and the Vice Chancellor’s Undergraduate Teaching Award at Texas A&M, the Outstanding Fisheries Research Award and the Special Recognition Award from the Texas Chapter of the American Fisheries Society, and the Ecological Society of America’s prestigious Mercer Award. In 2007, he was elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. His nominator says that Kirk Winemiller’s name is “synonymous with fisheries ecology and management worldwide.” A former student credits his research with clarifying many aspects of the very complex ecology of freshwater fishes, “from the evolution of life history strategies (i.e., how and when fishes allocate resources into reproduction) and the evolutionary origin of tropical fish diversity, to the structure of food webs in aquatic communities, the flow of nutrients in large tropical river ecosystems and the human impacts on aquatic systems from invasive species and altered surface flow to gold mining, hydroelectric dams, and overfishing.” A colleague concludes, “Without doubt he is contributing to consolidate the TAMU reputation in general ecology, fish ecology and aquatic ecosystems management around the World.”
College: College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Award Level: Research
Glenn
Agnolet
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Year Awarded: 2014
Glenn Agnolet earned his Ph.D. from Cornell University and completed postdoctoral work at AT&T Bell Laboratories before joining the faculty of the College of Science in 1985. Dr. Agnolet was a 1985 recipient of the National Science Foundation Young Investigator Award. While at Texas A&M, he has been recognized by The Association of Former Students with two college-level Teaching Awards and by the Physics Department with four Excellent Teaching Awards. He was awarded the Nelson M. Duller Professorship in Experimental Physics by the College of Science in recognition of his teaching and work with undergraduate Physics majors. His research interests lie in experimental low-temperature physics. Dr. Agnolet and his research group have studied the universal scaling of the two-dimensional superfluid phase transition of Helium-4 films and the effects of impurities on the growth dynamics of the Helium-4 solid-liquid interface using crystallization waves. One of their current projects is investigating the potential of a new configuration for inelastic electron tunneling spectroscopy (IETS) and the development of a low temperature scanning probe microscope capable of performing IETS.
A former colleague describes Dr. Agnolet as a “very well-liked individual who is loved by his students.” And that was the consensus among the six current and former students who wrote letters of support for his nomination. Most of the letters mentioned his “patience,” “understanding,” “respect,” and “kindness.” Several letters mentioned the GRE prep sessions Dr. Agnolet hosts for senior physics majors on Saturdays in the fall. One student who is now studying at Berkeley mentioned that “He makes his office his home and his students his family.” Following up on that point, a current student, who admits that he struggled with Physics, says he “spent hours upon hours” in Dr. Agnolet’s office receiving additional instruction and help. Another current senior summed it up when he wrote, “Dr. Agnolet plays a vital role in developing the mind and the character of every student that he teaches.”
College: College of Science
Award Level: Individual Student Relationships
S. Kent
Anderson '93
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Year Awarded: 2014
Early on, Kent S. Anderson set out to teach and earned degrees in education as well as a teaching certificate. But he ended up spending the majority of his career in the real estate business, ultimately coming to Texas A&M and earning a Ph.D. in Urban and Regional Science. Still the dream of teaching stuck with him. In 2007, he made his dream a reality when he joined the faculty of the College of Architecture’s Master of Land & Property Development Program. Soon after, he was given the task of establishing core competencies and redesigning the program’s curriculum. The five courses he now teaches reflect the industry’s best practices and give students the opportunity to learn from an active practitioner.
His students say that he provides a real-world perspective that allows them to understand the pieces of the puzzle fit together. Moreover, they say he’s not afraid to discuss his business-life failures as well as his successes. A former student writes that Dr. Anderson teaches students to analyze real-life projects so they can fully grasp the concepts and the thought processes involved in development. His teaching goes far beyond a textbook, spreadsheet, or site layout and engages the student in connecting the dots between what was learned in the classroom and what happens in the field. A colleague concurs, “Dr. Anderson’s courses epitomize interdisciplinary teaching and collaboration;” “Dr. Anderson engages students and offers high-impact learning experiences that prepare students for work in the real world;” and, “Dr. Anderson is the glue that holds his graduate program together.” Still another colleague writes that he is a role model, helping us all become better teachers through his example and mentorship. “He is an effective caring teacher, who combines his professional expertise and industry experience with teaching seamlessly.”
College: College of Architecture
Award Level: Teaching
Alfred
Bendixen
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Year Awarded: 2014
Alfred Bendixen joined the faculty of the College of Liberal Arts in 2005 after spending 17 years at California State University and 9 years at Barnard College. Since receiving his Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina, he has established a national reputation for his scholarly work in American literature and his founding and leadership of the American Literature Association. He is considered a pioneering scholar in the recovery of works by American women writers.
Dr. Bendixen has taught a remarkably wide range of advanced classes in American literature during his eight and half years at Texas A&M. The average student evaluation over all his courses is more than 4.6 out of a possible 5. These high scores are even more impressive when you consider that his reading lists and syllabi demonstrate that he demands more from his students than many others. For instance, students in his science fiction class read 10 novels and 21 short stories during a semester! In the comments, students call him “a really awesome Professor” who is “always prepared” and “full of insightful information.” They describe the course as “great” or “fantastic” and often describe it as their favorite course of the semester. One student even wrote, “Dr. Bendixen was the most influential teacher I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing. His understanding of the material is encyclopedic, and his energy has reaffirmed my love of literature.… I really feel that my perception of the world around me has been fundamentally changed in a positive way.” Several students wrote that they sign up for his courses on the basis of who is teaching, not the subject matter. One states, “I didn’t really care what the course was about; all I really wanted was to have him again as an instructor and mentor.” However, his nominator wrote that Dr. Bendixen’s real accomplishment is in teaching his students to think. As one student put it, “he challenges students with questions and ideas, enabling them to disinter the discoveries for themselves …. This style and attitude both challenges and empowers students.”
College: College of Liberal Arts
Award Level: Teaching
Akhil
Datta-Gupta
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Year Awarded: 2014
Akhil Datta-Gupta is a Regents Professor and holder of the L.F. Peterson '36 Endowed Chair in Petroleum Engineering. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin. He joined the Dwight Look College of Engineering faculty in 1994. He is well known for his contributions to the theory and practice of streamline simulation in petroleum reservoir characterization, management and calibration of high-resolution geologic models. Three-D streamline simulation is considered to be one of the major developments in petroleum reservoir simulation and performance forecasting. Among his numerous awards, Dr. Datta-Gupta has received two of the top three technical awards given by the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) and he has twice won the prestigious SPE Cedric K. Ferguson Award. He was elected to membership in the U.S. National Academy of Engineering in 2012. He has published more than 75 peer reviewed papers in a series of scientific journals and is the author of 3 books.
A colleague at Texas A&M wrote, “Dr. Akhil Datta-Gupta leads one of the most vigorous, exciting research programs in the Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering” and “he has made some of the most significant technological advances in reservoir characterization and simulation of anybody in the oil and gas industry.” A colleague from another university added that the best indicator of Dr. Datta-Gupta’s impact is the fact that the knowledge he and his lab created and the technologies they developed have been incorporated into industry-level workflows and are widely used by the oil and gas industry around the world. Another colleague sums it up saying, “Akhil Datta-Gupta’s work has had a real and lasting impact on the technology of the energy industry, adding significantly to the stability of our energy supply, and encouraging further reservoir characterization research.”
College: College of Engineering
Award Level: Research
Ronald A.
DeVore
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Year Awarded: 2014
Ronald A. DeVore is a University Distinguished Professor and the Walter E. Koss Professor in the Department of Mathematics. He has been a faculty member of the College of Science since 2007. He earned his Ph.D. from The Ohio State University. Known internationally for the breadth and originality of his fundamental contributions to applied mathematics, Dr. DeVore has received many honors, including the Fondation Sciences Mathématiques de Paris Gold Medal, the Alexander von Humboldt Research Award, and the Bulgarian Gold Medal of Science. He is a member of the inaugural class of Fellows of the American Mathematical Society, a member of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He has more than 155 refereed journal publications, 3 books and 10 expository articles. His work has been cited more than 15,000 times.
Dr. DeVore’s career touches upon many areas of mathematics, including approximation theory, numerical analysis, signal/image processing, and statistical estimation. His research has been rated by his peers as “profound and revolutionary,” his contributions as “fundamental,” his work as being endowed with “an exceptional mutually synergetic balance between theory and applications,” and his achievements as “simply astounding.” A supporter from Duke University said, “If I could build my own Dream Team of mathematical researchers of both theory and applications, he would be its Captain.” Another supporter adds, “Prof. Ron DeVore is my hero. Why is he my hero? Because he is all what we dream of becoming as faculty members.” The trademark of Professor DeVore’s work is that, as another colleague summarizes, “many of his results have been the first of a particular kind, thereby becoming door openers, exhibiting in a way the highest level of genuine novelty.”
College: College of Science
Award Level: Research
Daniel S.
Hale
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Year Awarded: 2014
Daniel S. Hale received his Ph.D. from Oklahoma State University. He joined Texas A&M AgriLife Extension in 1985. Dr. Hale delivers and interprets information on diet and health, food safety, livestock growth, animal welfare, livestock management, and meat science. His educational programs and resources, including hands-on seminars and online videos, engage consumers, youth and 4-H members, health professionals, retailers, food service managers, packers, processors, and livestock producers across the nation. Recommended practices adopted by his learners have produced documented economic impacts totaling many millions of dollars. Dr. Hale also performs applied meat-science research and, with others, conducted nationally recognized studies, such as the National Beef Quality Audit, National Consumer Retail Beef Study, National Market Basket Survey, and National Beef Tenderness Survey. These led to major changes in the way cattle are raised, the way meat is processed, and the manner in which meat is offered to consumers through retail and food services. Most notable among Dr. Hale’s honors are Progressive Farmer Magazine’s Man of the Year Award, the American Meat Science Association Distinguished Service in Extension/Industry Award, the Texas A&M System’s Vice Chancellor’s Award for Extension Specialist, the Texas Pork Producers Distinguished Service Award.
A colleague says that “Without question, Dr. Hale is the top meat science extension specialist in the U.S. He has demonstrated his unique ability to plan and conduct numerous workshops, seminars, and other programs with a high level of commitment and professionalism.” All of the letters supporting Dr. Hale praise his character and demeanor as much as his expertise as a scientist and a teacher. To this point, a supporter from the meat industry credits him with teaching her “to be a better manager, teacher, mentor, association officer, and parent.” To which she added, “I know I am but one of many who feel this way.”
College: Texas A&M Agrilife Extension Service
Award Level: Extension, Outreach, Continuing Ed, & Prof Dev
Cynthia
Hurt
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Year Awarded: 2014
Cynthia “Cindy” Hurt came to Texas A&M in 1983 and joined the staff of Department of Anthropology in 2004. She has 23 years of experience at Texas A&M University. She earned an associate’s degree from Blinn College and is a Certified Administrative Professional.
Her nominator describes Ms. Hurt as the go-to person for the department’s faculty, staff and students. As assistant to the department head “she wears a lot of hats and actually does much more than her title suggests.” She is the Human Resources Liaison handling all employment, payroll, and personnel matters for 24 faculty, 3 staff and more than 40 graduate and undergraduate student employees. She is the building proctor, maintaining the department’s facilities, including more than 15 scientific research and teaching labs. She is the facilities and equipment manager, administering keys and maintaining the department’s equipment inventory. She is the department’s office manager, supervising two full-time staff and four part-time student workers. She is the visiting scholar facilitator, administering campus visits of invited lecturers, faculty job candidates, Fulbright Fellows, etc. She is the student scholarship, fellowship, and assistantship administrator, chronicling graduate student eligibility for assistantships, processing graduate student tuition waivers, posting scholarships, and facilitating graduate assistantship assignments. She is the travel and purchasing manager, reviewing and approving faculty, student, and staff travel and significant equipment purchases. Finally, she is assistant to the department head, maintaining the department’s budget and gathering and analyzing data to be used in annual reports to the dean. He concludes saying, “My head spins every time I think about Ms. Hurt’s various roles in the department. She’s the glue that holds not just the department office together, but the whole department—its faculty, staff and students.”
College: College of Liberal Arts
Award Level: Staff
Arul
Jayaraman
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Year Awarded: 2014
Arul Jayaraman has been a member of the faculty of the Dwight Look College of Engineering since 2004. He is the holder of the Ray B. Nesbitt I Professorship in Chemical Engineering. After earning concurrent degrees in chemical engineering and physics from the Birla Institute of Technology & Science in Pilani, India, Dr. Jayaraman went on to earn an M.S. in Chemical Engineering from Tufts University and a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the University of California, Irvine. He has been recognized for teaching excellence with the Celanese Teaching Excellence Award and the Tenneco Meritorious Teaching Award.
Dr. Jayaraman’s teaching philosophy puts the student at the center of the learning experience. Put simply, he strives to create an interactive and highly effective learning environment where students actively engage in the learning process. This is important in the graduate and undergraduate courses he teaches related to his field of research, but it is critical in the sophomore-level course “Elementary Chemical Engineering” that’s required for all chemical engineering majors. To meet the range of learning needs in this large and diverse class, he has introduced technology and innovative teaching approaches, such as the online problem solving system, Sapling Learning. These approaches have proven to be immensely successful and, despite the size of the class and the spectrum of abilities and—ultimately— grades, he repeatedly achieves extraordinary instructor ratings. In addition to his regular teaching and research, Dr. Jayaraman has mentored 30 undergraduates and 3 high school students in his lab. This level of involvement is extremely significant and requires a major time commitment, which clearly demonstrates his passion for mentoring undergraduates.
College: College of Engineering
Award Level: Teaching
Ann
Kier
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Year Awarded: 2014
Ann B. Kier earned her Ph.D. from the University of Missouri?Columbia and her DVM from Texas A&M. She joined the faculty of the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences in 1993 where she serves as the Director of the NIH T32 and R25 Training Programs for graduate veterinarians. In research, Dr. Kier collaborates with her graduate students to develop mouse models used in research with fatty acid, cholesterol, and glucose metabolism. She is the author more than 200 publications and book chapters and has served on numerous editorial boards and NIH study sections. Over the span of her career, Dr. Kier has been advisor, committee member, and/or mentor for more than 95 graduate and professional students. She is a Diplomate of the American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine and the recipient of numerous honors and awards, including the CVM Bridges Teaching and Service Award for Outstanding Student Mentoring, the NIH Scientific Review Evaluation Award, and the Texas A&M Women’s Week Administrator Award.
Dr. Kier has devoted extensive time and effort to mentoring graduate students at Texas A&M. One former student credits her for single-handedly changing the culture and paradigm for graduate education in the department while she was department head. A point proved by a five-fold increase in the department’s graduate enrollment over of two years. Students and faculty know her as a person of integrity and focus with a love for mentoring students and a talent to inspire them to do their best. Invariably her students comment about her passion, encouragement and commitment to their success. She has also inspired her students to become mentors themselves. One of those former students wrote, “She is brilliant, kind, remarkable, excellent and much esteemed…. However as a mentor, she is truly the best one a student could ever ask for…. She has inspired me, even at this stage, to mentor those students in need: those students who have small time beginnings yet have big time dreams.”
College: College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
Award Level: Graduate Mentoring
Andreas
Klappenecker
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Year Awarded: 2014
Andreas Klappenecker earned his Ph.D. from the University of Karlsruhe (now called Karlsruhe Institute of Technology) in Germany. He joined the faculty of the Dwight Look College of Engineering in 2000. His research interests include the design and analysis of algorithms, in particular quantum algorithms, randomized algorithms, and dynamic distributed algorithms. He teaches mainly in the area of theoretical computer science, where his courses range from very large undergraduate core courses to cutting edge research courses. He has received a National Science Foundation CAREER award, a TEES Select Young Faculty award, and an Undergraduate Faculty Teaching Excellence Award. He was also named a Halliburton Faculty Fellow and Fellow-at-Large of the Santa Fe Institute.
A supporter says, regardless of the level or the size of the class, Dr. Klappenecker consistently receives impressive teaching evaluations. One of the qualities that makes him a great teacher is his desire to focus on student learning and improving teaching methods. For example, he has been particularly interested in improving students’ problem-solving skills. So, last fall, he overhauled an algorithms course required for all computer science undergraduates, introducing a flipped classroom model where students learn new content online by watching video lectures outside of class and work on assigned problems in class. This allowed him to interact with students and provide personalized guidance in problem solving. Student comments indicate the technique worked exceptionally well and student performance on midterm exams improved in comparison to previous versions of the course. In the words of his nominator, Professor Andreas Klappenecker “is an outstanding and gifted teacher, a brilliant researcher, and an individual who is committed to serving his profession and the students of Texas A&M University.”
College: College of Engineering
Award Level: Teaching
Dimitris
Lagoudas
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Year Awarded: 2014
Dimitris C. Lagoudas is a University Distinguished Professor and the inaugural recipient of the John and Bea Slattery Chair in Aerospace Engineering. He serves as associate vice chancellor for engineering research for The Texas A&M University System, senior associate dean for research in the Dwight Look College of Engineering and deputy director of the Texas Engineering Experiment Station (TEES), and the director of the Texas Institute for Intelligent Materials and Structures. He received his Ph.D. from Lehigh University. Dr. Lagoudas joined the Texas A&M faculty in 1992. His research involves the design, characterization and modeling of multifunctional material systems at nano, micro, and macro levels. His research team is one of the most recognized internationally in the area of modeling and characterization of shape memory alloys (materials that undergo a reversible thermo-mechanical phase transition so they “remember” their shapes) that are giving rise to applications in the aerospace, automotive, and medical areas.
Dr. Lagoudas has co-authored more than 400 scientific publications with 165 in archival journals. He has also co-authored a textbook with his graduate students. He is a TEES fellow, a Texas A&M University Faculty Fellow, and a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and the Institute of Physics. In addition, he has received numerous other significant awards.
A colleague at another university commented that the impact Dr. Lagoudas “has had on the aerospace profession and industry is profound.” The smart memory alloys framework his team developed has been an enabling step toward integrating active materials into commercial and military aircraft for increased fuel economy, increased performance, and decreased noise. Another colleague adds, “For any significant recognition the requirements can be boiled down to two words: quality and impact. Professor Lagoudas’ contributions have these in abundance.”
College: College of Engineering
Award Level: Research
Rafael
Lara-Alecio
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Year Awarded: 2014
Rafael Lara-Alecio joined the faculty of the College of Education and Human Development in 1991, after earning a Ph.D. from the University of Utah. He is the director of the Bilingual Education Program and the Center for Research and Development for Dual Language and Literacy Acquisition in the Department of Educational Psychology. He has published more than 100 refereed manuscripts, including journal articles, book chapters, and technical reports. He is co-editor of the Handbook on Educational Theories, which serves as the first comprehensive collection of some of the most influential theories guiding research for graduate students, professors, and practitioners. He has received numerous awards, including the Texas Higher Education Honoree from the Texas Association of Bilingual Education, the Outstanding Research Award from the Department of Educational Psychology, and the Diversity Award from the Office of the Provost and the Office of the Vice President and Associate Provost for Diversity.
An external supporter describes Dr. Lara-Alecio as “one of a small handful of founding fathers” in the field of multiple language acquisition, adding that he has been central to the growth and development of the field. Another supporter credits Dr. Lara-Alecio with adding substantially to the basic body of knowledge in multiple language acquisition, which has contributed significantly to the improvement of education conditions for English learners in the United States and abroad. A colleague concludes “Dr. Lara-Alecio has the broad-range strengths of an invigorating scholar whose ideas and work impact schools and communities in healthy ways. His long and championing leadership has strengthened a successful curriculum development for educators and schools and contributes to the growth of a culturally responsive K?12 pedagogy.”
College: College of Education and Human Development
Award Level: Research
Jean Marie
Linhart
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Year Awarded: 2014
Jean Marie Linhart earned her Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin. She joined the faculty of the College of Science in 2008. She has received a college-level Teaching Award from The Association of Former Students at Texas A&M and recognition as Instructor of the Quarter from ITT Technical Institute in Austin. She is co-principal investigator on two National Science Foundation grants that foster interdisciplinary undergraduate research.
Dr. Linhart was nominated by the Student Council of the College of Science based on her outstanding success in engaging undergraduate students in research, which is demonstrated by the awards her students have won at both local and national levels. A colleague revealed that much of her success with student engagement is rooted in her reputation for being “the campus expert on predicting the spread of zombie epidemics,” a favorite project for students in Math 442, Mathematical Modeling. Highlights from just two semesters of Math 442 include students winning: first place for an undergraduate mathematics poster in A&M’s Student Research Week, first place for a video project in the Writing Center’s 10th Anniversary Contest, two prizes at the Mathematical Association of America’s MathFest, and a Goldwater Scholarship.
Another colleague reported that Dr. Linhart has been an exceptional asset to the Math department. In addition to teaching, she has been instrumental in summer Research Experiences for Undergraduates and in the department’s outreach activities. She was the main organizer of the very successful Math Mini-Fair, a daylong event where 150 K?12 students (together with their friends and family) participated in Problem Solving Contests, a Mathematical Art Room filled with Math art and activities, a puzzle/geometry room, and various Math movies and presentations.
College: College of Science
Award Level: Teaching
E. Lisako
McKyer
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Year Awarded: 2014
E. Lisako J. McKyer earned her master’s in public health and her Ph.D. from Indiana University, Bloomington. She joined the faculty of the College of Education & Human Development in 2006 where she is a Read Faculty Fellow and director of the Transdisciplinary Center for Health Equity Research. She also founded and directs the Child & Adolescent Health Research Lab.
According to her students, Dr. McKyer’s philosophy for graduate student training and mentoring is anchored by her strong belief that graduate students are to be treated as ‘junior colleagues-in-training.’” They say that her “enthusiasm” and “passion” for her chosen field of health promotion, child health, and health inequities is evident in her teaching style, her passion to collaborate and her drive to involve her students in research opportunities, all tailored to the specific needs and strengths of her students. As a result, during her time at Texas A&M, she has mentored a diverse group of more than 50 graduate students, involving them in her research and scholarly publications and presentations, often listing them as first authors. A current student wrote, “Her enthusiasm and passion is exhibited in all she does, she has the biggest of hearts, always has a smile on her face and is always ready to chip in a good word ….She is infectious in a good way.” He credits her positive attitude for motivating him and others to emulate her good work. “You just want to sit and listen to her all day.” Another student wrote, “I leave an exchange with Dr. McKyer fired up about my research, my teaching, and the many things going on under her umbrella of influence. Her enthusiasm is contagious to say the least.” A former student now at Baylor College of Medicine concludes, “she provided me with opportunities to present at conferences, publish in journals, and connect to others…. Not only did she provide external resources and connections to help me achieve my goals, she instilled internal motivation and confidence.”
College: College of Education and Human Development
Award Level: Graduate Mentoring
Joseph A.
Morgan '80
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Year Awarded: 2014
Joseph A. Morgan earned both his master’s and doctoral degrees from Texas A&M. He served 22 years in the US Air Force; his last assignment was as a member of the electrical engineering faculty at the US Air Force Academy. He joined the faculty of the Dwight Look College of Engineering in 1989. He has received numerous awards at the department and college level recognizing him as a master teacher and student mentor.
His nominator commented that in his two decades with the department, Dr. Morgan’s leadership as a program director for the Electronic Systems Engineering Technology (ESET) Program, associate department head for undergraduate studies and as an active senior faculty member has made a profoundly positive impact on the students in the Department of Engineering Technology and Industrial Distribution. Even in his capacity as a researcher or in service to national organizations, he finds ways to involve undergraduate students in value-added activities. Dr. Morgan consistently ranks among the highest rated instructors in his department. Student comments from teaching evaluations most often site his vast industry experience, exceptional organization and communication skills, and state that he is demanding but fair.
As a teacher, Dr. Morgan has earned the respect of his colleagues many times over. He has an unparalleled enthusiasm for working with undergraduate students, sparking their passion for learning, and motivating them to do more than they thought possible. He also has an endless supply of new and creative ways to teach and ensure student learning. His current efforts in recruiting and developing tools for teaching engineering to high school students will have a significant impact on the ESET Program, its incoming freshmen and outgoing graduates for years to come.
College: College of Engineering
Award Level: Teaching
Walter Gillis
Peacock
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Year Awarded: 2014
Walter Gillis Peacock earned his Ph.D. from the University of Georgia. He joined the faculty of the College of Architecture in 2003 where he is director of the Hazard Reduction and Recover Center and assistant director of the Texas Census Research Data Center. He is locally, nationally, and internationally recognized for his research on disaster recovery, resiliency, and social vulnerability. He has been awarded the Sandy and Bryan Mitchell Master Builder Endowed Chair and the Rodney L. Dockery Endowed Professorship in Housing and the Homeless from the College of Architecture. Nationally, he was awarded the Quarantelli Award for Social Science Disaster Theory, and he was elected president of the International Research Committee on Disasters. He has published 2 books and more than 160 journal articles, book chapters, research monographs, and professional papers. He has given briefings on household, housing, and community disaster recovery, resilience, and vulnerability to local, state, and federal officials, including programs for the White House Conference Center on resiliency research, the National Academy of Science, and the National Science Foundation.
A supporter noted, Dr. Peacock’s contribution to the human dimension of disaster recovery “has become the foundation for the fields of disaster sociology and social vulnerability.” Furthermore he “is a pioneer in introducing new analytical methods into the field…especially...his Domestic Assets Index…a breakthrough in quantifying household recovery after a disaster event. Another supporter noted, “Dr. Peacock’s works [methodological] are used as standards for conceptualization and measurement, for understanding substantive areas within the study of disasters….” A colleague concludes, “Peacock’s passion for his topic and his ability to articulate the need for and utility of further research on the social impacts of disasters have heavily influenced the national, and even international, research agenda.”
College: College of Architecture
Award Level: Research
Christopher
Quick
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Year Awarded: 2014
Christopher Quick received his Ph.D. in biomedical engineering from Rutgers University. After completing a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center, he took the unusual step of turning to the study of physiology and joining the Department of Veterinary Physiology and Pharmacology in Texas A&M’s College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences in 2002.
According to his nominators, Dr. Quick turned his lab into an incubator for developing novel approaches to break down the mutually-reinforcing barriers separating the disciplines of engineering and physiology, the processes of research and education, and the activities of students and professors. In this environment, he worked directly with students to develop the “Research-Intensive Community” model. The community is composed of teams that pair an experienced student seeking leadership experience with an interdisciplinary team of students seeking research experience. Dr. Quick applied this model to create the DeBakey Undergraduate Research Program in 2004, which has since steadily grown to create research opportunities for more than 100 students per semester. By working with students to adapt this model in new ways, he has developed research-based classes, K?12 outreach activities, and large-scale summer research programs. Dr. Quick’s efforts to integrate the disciplines of engineering and physiology were recognized by an NIH Quantitative Research Career Award and a Microcirculatory Society Award for Excellence in Lymphatic Research. His efforts to integrate process of research and education were recognized by the award of four competitive grants from the NIH and NSF. Most importantly his efforts to integrate what students learn in the classroom with what professors do in the lab was recognized by a Richard H. Davis Teaching Award, a college-level Teaching Award from The Association of Former Students, and a Sigma Xi Outstanding Science Communicator Award.
College: College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
Award Level: Teaching
James B.
Rainer '93
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Year Awarded: 2014
James B. Rainer earned his B.S. and M.S. from Texas A&M. Mr. Rainer was hired by the Safety and Health Office as a Student Worker I in 1991. He has been a loyal employee through multiple reorganizations, a department name change, several office moves around campus, and three different directors. Throughout that time, James advanced his professional career with a specialty in fire and life safety. He is directly responsible for the fire and life safety program and oversees the environmental program. He has received certifications and licenses in various areas, including Fireworks Flame Effects Operator, Fireworks Pyrotechnic Operator, Certified Fire Inspector I, II, and III, among others. He is the university’s Fire Marshal and is the guiding force in Kyle Field Command, ensuring a joint cooperative effort between emergency management, law enforcement, fire, and emergency medical services, ensuring a safe game-day experience. With his leadership, Texas A&M committed to investing $33 million over ten years to upgrade fire and life safety systems on campus. These upgrades included the installation of automatic fire sprinkler systems, replacing automatic fire detection and notification system, installing or upgrading emergency lights, exit signs automatic door closers, fire-rated doors, and similar items.
A supporter wrote, “James’ expertise in his field and his sense of professionalism are only surpassed by his love for Texas A&M. His dedication to this University, working his way through the ranks of Environmental Health and Safety positions over his 20 year career, is evident in all he does. His selfless service to the school we love is reflected in his genuine care for the students, faculty, staff and visitors to this fine institution. James is a great ambassador for Texas A&M and truly embodies the Spirit he has embraced for more than half of his life.”
College: Division of Finance and Administration
Award Level: Staff
Helen L.
Reed
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Year Awarded: 2014
Helen L. Reed, Regents Professor and Presidential Professor for Teaching Excellence, joined the faculty of the Dwight Look College of Engineering in 2004. She earned her Ph.D. from Virginia Tech. She has been named a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics (AIAA), the American Physical Society, and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and she has received numerous significant awards. But one award stands out as the mark of a truly great teacher. In 2012, the May and December graduating seniors selected her for the McElmurry Teaching Excellence Award, citing her as “exemplifying dedication and commitment to developing students professionally and academically by displaying a desire for students to succeed, creatively presenting classroom material, and offering opportunities for mentorship and guidance outside the classroom.”
Dr. Reed founded and directs the Texas A&M AggieSat Lab Satellite Program. AggieSat is an extracurricular student-driven organization, which to date has involved roughly 1,000 students and multiple departments and colleges. Through this program, students designed, launched, and operated Texas A&M’s first satellite in 2009, with the next mission planned for this year, 2014. A former student wrote, “It is without question that Dr. Reed’s small satellite program was the primary factor in my choice of undergraduate universities...I am sincerely grateful for the considerable impact Dr. Reed has had on my entire post-secondary education and subsequent career. I value not only the opportunities she provided, but also the unceasing optimism and support with which she interacts with all of her students.”
A colleague commented that her “overarching concern is providing her students with the best level of education possible.” He feels privileged to have had her as a mentor. But her nominator says it most succinctly; Dr. Reed’s classroom performance is “truly top notch.”
College: College of Engineering
Award Level: Teaching
Larry
Reynolds
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Year Awarded: 2014
Larry J. Reynolds, University Distinguished Professor of English and Thomas Franklin Mayo Professor of Liberal Arts, has been a faculty member in the College of Liberal Arts since 1974. Since receiving his Ph.D. from Duke University, he has gone on to become one of the most productive and influential scholars of the period of mid-19th century American literature known as American Renaissance. His nine books and numerous articles initiated the transnational and new historicist approaches that fundamentally altered traditional understanding of 19th century American literary history. Dr. Reynolds’ awards include fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the American Council of Learned Societies, the Council for the International Exchange of Scholars, and the United States Information Agency. As a Fulbright Scholar, he has lectured in Portugal, Italy, and Belgium. He serves on the editorial boards of five journals and is currently associate editor of the South Central Review.
His nominator says, “Professor Reynolds is one of the very few literary scholars to earn repeated acclaim for work that has dramatically changed our approach to the practice of literary scholarship as well as our understanding of major writers.” The importance of his scholarly achievements is reflected in his letters of support. The consensus opinion is that Dr. Reynolds is clearly among the most productive and most influential scholars working in American Literature. One supporter wrote that he is “known internationally as one of the most important scholars of American Romanticism, and certainly one of the half dozen best of his generation.” The letters frequently refer to his work as “seminal,” a term rarely used in literary studies. Others describe him as “a pioneer” or praise his “long, energetic, and continually developing career.” One supporter proclaimed that “there is no scholar in the field of American literature whose work I admire more.”
College: College of Liberal Arts
Award Level: Research
Ghada
Salama
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Year Awarded: 2014
Ghada Salama earned her Ph.D. from Cairo University and completed postdoctoral study at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Cincinnati, Ohio. She joined the faculty of Texas A&M University at Qatar in 2006. She has taught several undergraduate courses and has consistently received good student evaluations. She received the Distinguished Faculty Appreciation Award from the class of 2012.
Dr. Salama established a student chapter of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) at the Qatar campus. The chapter has been very active since its inception and has gained international recognition in a short time. Each year, Dr. Salama secures travel funds for student officers to attend the AIChE Annual Meeting in the U.S., encouraging them to take part in the poster competition. The TAMUQ team has done well. For two consecutive years, they won second place, and, this past year, they took first! With her support, the chapter has built its first ChemEcar and successfully participated in the AIChE ChemEcar competition. In support of women engineering students, Dr. Salama also serves as the advisor for the Society of Women Engineers, for which she received the advisor of the year award for 2013. But that’s not all. Dr. Salama also serves as advisor to the Engineers Without Borders student organization and works with the Student Affairs Department on outreach to high school students.
Her nominator writes, “As the only woman on the chemical engineering faculty, Dr. Salama occupies an especially important position in our program. She serves as an outstanding role model for our students, especially young women. Because of her Middle Eastern background, our students view Ghada as an Arab woman, much like themselves, who has achieved success in the international engineering community. Ghada provides a fine example which young women in our program can emulate as they build their own careers.”
College: Texas A&M Qatar
Award Level: Individual Student Relationships
Evelyn
Tiffany-Castiglioni
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Year Awarded: 2014
Evelyn Tiffany-Castiglioni currently serves as head of the Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences and as associate dean for undergraduate education—Biomedical Medical Sciences program. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston and completed postdoctoral studies at UCLA. She joined the faculty of the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences in 1982. Dr. Castiglioni is currently a member of the editorial board for International Journal of Developmental Neuroscience and associate editor for Neurotoxicology. She is a member of the External Advisory Committee for the NIH SuperFund Program at the Harvard School of Public Health & Harvard Medical School. She is editor and co-author of a book and has published 82 peer-reviewed papers and 15 book chapters. She received the Distinguished Achievement Award for Research from The Association of Former Students in 2008. Her primary research interests are neurotoxicology and in vitro toxicology, particularly the mechanisms by which brain cells called astrocytes handle toxic metals.
As associate dean for undergraduate education, Dr. Castiglioni manages the largest undergraduate program on the Texas A&M campus. The program includes 1,858 undergraduate students and 56 faculty members/advisors. As department head, she oversees a research-intensive and teaching-oriented department with 48 full- and part-time faculty, 23 postdoctoral fellows and research associates, 71 graduate students, 17 staff members, and more than $4.1 million in contracts/grants annually. Her nominators say Dr. Castiglioni exhibits extraordinary competence, vision, poise, patience, and determination in parallel supervision of these programs and has been an active contributor to the success of Texas A&M via various platforms including her service on university committees and student/staff organizations. Her dean concludes, “Truly, Dr. Evelyn Castiglioni’s sincerity, warm personality and special human touch make her one of few administrators who do not simply leave an impact, but create a legacy.”
College: College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
Award Level: Administration
Jay R.
Walton
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Year Awarded: 2014
In addition to being a Professor of Mathematics, Jay R. Walton is a Professor of Aerospace Engineering and deputy director of the Institute for Applied Mathematics and Computational Science. He has been a faculty member in the College of Science for 40 years. He earned his Ph.D. from Indiana University.
His nominators say that Dr. Walton has had a transformative effect on the pedagogical mission of the Math department ever since he directed its graduate program from 1994 to 2000. Subsequent to that, he founded the department’s Research Experience for Undergraduates, serving for ten years as principal investigator on the supporting grant from the NSF and as a teacher and mentor each summer for five to ten students in mathematical ecology and physiology. In a second NSF-supported initiative, he collaborated with colleagues in biology and ecology to develop an interdisciplinary bachelor’s degree in mathematical biology. Dr. Walton has supervised many student research projects through that program. A former student, now in medical school, commented that Dr. Walton was “an absolutely indispensable part of my education at Texas A&M.” Another former student said, “It was impossible not to learn something new every week, and in my four years I don’t think he ever repeated a topic.” Dr. Walton also has helped develop courses on mathematical biology at all levels.
In the words of still another former student, who is currently a doctoral student at the University of Chicago, “Dr. Walton’s unique ability to maintain a clear and natural flow of ideas inside and outside of the classroom is an ability I can only hope to attain. To say that Dr. Walton has left an impression on me is an understatement. Not only did I learn new mathematics, but I learned timeless traits of a first class educator and scholar.”
College: College of Science
Award Level: Teaching
Vickie M.
Williamson
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Year Awarded: 2014
Vickie M. Williamson earned her Ph.D. from the University of Oklahoma. She joined the faculty of the College of Science in 1997. She has been recognized with a Student-Led Award for Teaching Excellence and a college-level Teaching Award from The Association of Former Students, and was named a Fish Camp namesake. She serves on the editorial board for the Journal of Science Education and Technology, as a reviewer for the Journal of Chemical Education and as regional director for the Associated Chemistry Teachers of Texas.
In the words of her nominator, Dr. Williamson has an “uncommon ability as a classroom teacher.” Since joining the department, she has taught large lecture sections of Chemistry 101 and 102. Remarkably, during the 16 academic years that she has been at Texas A&M, she has worked with almost 19,000 students! Students give the highest praise for these courses, as reflected in student evaluations which are always high and among the best in the department. In particular, her classroom demonstrations of chemistry concepts consistently win high marks from students. A former student wrote that she “knew it was going to be an exciting day in chemistry class when [Dr. Williamson] rolled in her cart with the protective shield.” From demonstrating exothermic reactions by igniting aluminum and iron oxide in a soda can to creating a rainbow with indicators to visualize acid and base reactions, she engages her students in learning that makes the point hard to forget. Another former student commented that “waking up early for her lectures was never a problem” and added that “her enthusiasm and teaching style made General Chemistry nothing to be afraid of.”
A former student, now a Chemistry teacher herself, sums it up, “Dr. Williamson is incredibly intelligent, has a heart for her students, and a talent for teaching. I am thankful for all that she did to prepare me for my career in teaching science.”
College: College of Science
Award Level: Teaching