Murray
Barrick
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Year Awarded: 2013
Murray Barrick earned his B.A. from the University of Northern Iowa and his M.S. and Ph.D. from the University of Akron. He joined Mays Business School in 2006 where he holds the Robertson Chair and teaches courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels. His research focuses on the impact individual differences in behavior and personality have on job performance and on methods of measuring and predicting such differences. He received the Distinguished Scientific Contributions Award from the Society for Industrial/Organizational Psychology (SIOP) and has been recognized as the 5th most published author in Journal of Applied Psychology and Personnel Psychology. Dr. Barrick is a Fellow of the Academy of Management and of SIOP and serves as chair of the HR Division of the Academy of Management.
Dr. Barrick’s pioneering work in the area of personality has had landmark implications and influence. His path-breaking article, coauthored with M.K. Mount, provided both a new conceptual framework for understanding how certain personality traits predict performance and empirical evidence to support that framework. Specifically, the authors unequivocally demonstrated its potential significance to both theory and research, as well as to the practice of management. Here are some reviewer comments. “Murray Barrick is among the few scholars who have shown that personality can be quite strongly related to employee’s attitudes and behaviors. . . . Murray’s record shines not only for its importance and quality, but also for its consistency.” “. . . his scientific contribution has been nothing short of remarkable.” And “. . . Murray Barrick has been a pivotal figure in the field’s renewed interest in personality.”
Dr. Barrick continues to publish in the top journals and, indeed, his rate of publication has actually increased over the past five years.
College: Department of Management
Award Level: Research
Charlene
Boggus
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Year Awarded: 2013
Charlene Boggus earned an associate’s degree from Brazosport College. She came to Texas A&M in 1987. While here, she has received a number of awards, including selection as a Fish Camp Namesake, the Vice Chancellor’s Award for Excellence, the Dr. John J. Koldus Advisor Award, and the President’s Meritorious Service Award.
Her nominators write that she epitomizes excellence in all her interactions with the Aggie family on a day-to-day basis: greeting prospective students and their parents, answering multitudes of questions, providing administrative support to faculty and advisors, managing 20 New Student Conferences a year, and serving as the advisor to a student organization. Students in the department know that Mrs. Boggus is ALWAYS there for them. Her department head says that she walks the extra mile for them on a daily basis. If there are students are in the hospital, she takes time to stop by to visit them. If they are ill at home, she calls to check on them. Although she is often more of a comfort to parents than the students, parents know that they can depend on her to “watch out” for their children when they can’t be there. A faculty member says she’s a mentor, counselor, friend, advisor, and sometimes your “mom away from home.” She greets each student and co-worker with a smile and treats the students’ concerns as if they were her own. She truly cares about people.
Her department head concludes, “Charlene Boggus is the glue that holds together the undergraduate program in the Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education, and Communications. She is our front line person and she always has a smile, the answers, and the helping attitude.”
College: Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communications
Award Level: Staff
Noah
Cohen
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Year Awarded: 2013
Noah Cohen has been a member of the faculty of the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences since 1989. He earned his A.B. and V.M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania and his M.P.H. and Ph.D. from John Hopkins University. Among his most prestigious awards are the World Equine Veterinary Association/Schering-Plough Applied Equine Research Award and Honorary Diplomate status in the American Veterinary Epidemiologic Society.
Though Dr. Cohen directs the Equine Infectious Disease Laboratory, studying cellular mechanisms of immunity to infectious disease in horses, his greatest contributions have come from patient-based studies of important health problems involving animals with spontaneous disease. He pioneered farm-based and private practice-based epidemiologic studies in horses, which led to faster and more effective solutions, and reduced the need to use healthy horses in research. Two key studies of this type uncovered risk factors that make racehorses more prone to injuries and feeding practices that caused equine colic, a major killer of horses. His theories on Rhodococcus equi pneumonia of foals have led to practices that save hundreds of equine lives annually.
Dr. Cohen’s two most exciting current collaborative projects involve using electron-beam technology to produce vaccines for important diseases of horses and using next-generation sequencing and genome-wide approaches to studying infectious disease of horses. His greatest contributions have been his theories and his thinking, which have revolutionized the way infectious diseases are approached in veterinary medicine. His nominator concludes that Dr. Cohen has improved the welfare and well-being of animals both here and abroad, touching the lives of so many people and animals by answering important research questions and delivering useful solutions that make a difference immediately.
College: Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences
Award Level: Research
John A.
Gladysz
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Year Awarded: 2013
John Gladysz joined the faculty of the College of Science in 2007 and holds the Dow Chair in Chemical Invention. He earned his B.S. from the University of Michigan and his Ph.D. from Stanford University. His honors include the Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award and the Award in Organometallic Chemistry from the American Chemical Society, the von Humboldt Foundation Research Award for Senior Scientists, inaugural Fellow of the American Chemical Society, and editor in chief of Organometallics.
Dr. Gladysz’s research achievements are anchored in organometallic chemistry, and encompass creative multistep syntheses of complex target molecules, applications in organic synthesis, novel enantioselective and recyclable catalysts, incisive studies of reaction mechanisms, and a variety of physical techniques. They are remarkable for their originality, breadth of impact, and thorough execution, and often extend into physical organic chemistry or other fields for inspiration. He has more than 400 refereed research publications, 475 invited lectures at academic and industrial laboratories, and more than 150 invited lectures at meetings and symposia. Since coming to Texas A&M, Dr. Gladysz has worked to build a stronger research community through his leadership on the Distinguished Professor’s Executive Committee, which he currently chairs. His national and international service to the broader scientific community is a credit to the university, and the Department of Chemistry.
His nominator comments that Dr. Gladysz’s research is clearly at the frontier of synthesis, reactivity, catalysis, mechanism, structure, and bonding in chemistry, vividly conveying the vitality of these disciplines. Further, he says that Dr. Gladysz is totally committed to research and education. He runs a vibrant and productive research group and has consistently maintained an enviable level of excellence.
College: Department of Chemistry
Award Level: Research
Janet
Hammer
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Year Awarded: 2013
Janet Hammer began teaching in the College of Education and Human Development during fall 2004 after earning her Ph.D. at The University of Texas at Austin. During her nine years at Texas A&M, she has been instrumental in creating a best-practice middle school teacher preparation program while mentoring her students and the adjunct professors who teach in the program.
Dr. Hammer teaches undergraduate and graduate level courses, including social studies methods and English as a second language methodology. She is also the coordinator of the department’s online M.Ed. program. In addition to teaching four courses each semester, she also observes 30 to 40 students, teaching in local schools. She gives them feedback about their lessons and work in the public school as part of her ongoing philosophy of developing master teachers. Her students have often commented that she has prepared them to be confident teachers who possess not only knowledge but a passion for their profession.
In addition to her work on campus, her international work has certainly made an incredible impact on many students. Dr. Hammer has co-led nine study abroad programs while at Texas A&M. She is noted for her ongoing program in Italy that includes an intensive two-month field experience in which pre-service teachers teach English to Italian middle school students. She also was invited to teach in the English Summer Camp at Tshinghua University in Beijing.
And that’s not all. One of her colleagues describes her as a dedicated and dynamic educator who has compiled a distinguished record of scholarship and service. He goes on to say that Dr. Hammer’s pioneering work will have benefits for many years to come as her students share what they learned with generations of Texas students.
College: Department of Teaching, Learning and Culture
Award Level: Teaching
Shelley
Holliday ’01
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Year Awarded: 2013
Shelley Holliday earned her bachelor’s degree in architectural studies from the University of Nebraska and her master’s in civil engineering from Texas A&M. She joined the faculty of the College of Architecture in 2001. Including one year as a graduate assistant lecturer, this year marks her thirteenth year of teaching at Texas A&M and, by all accounts, it’s been an incredible year. In addition to today’s award, the students elected her to be the inaugural recipient of the Department of Architecture Undergraduate Faculty Award, and she received the 2011 Association of Former Students College-Level Distinguished Teaching Award.
Ms. Holliday’s teaching record is outstanding. She consistently garners high teaching evaluations from her students for courses at all levels in the department. Her nominators credit her expertise for the success of a new studio course that integrates architectural technology directly into the design studio experience. A top graduate student commented that Ms. Holliday’s “ability to keep aesthetically-minded design students engaged in mathematically and technically rich engineering concepts is no small feat and one that should be celebrated.” A colleague affirmed her teaching prowess saying that the juniors and seniors who take her structures course sing her praise. He summed up his thoughts with “I wish we had more faculty members with her attitude and aptitude for education.”
Before coming to Texas A&M for graduate school, Ms. Holliday served as a structural engineer for an architectural firm in Chicago. Although her time there was limited, she had the unique experience of working on several buildings that have been recognized as landmarks in contemporary architecture, most notably the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain. One of her faculty colleagues says she applies this experience directly to her teaching. He points out that her experience allows her to “translate the abstract formula into the nuts, bolts and welds” the students need to understand and succeed.
College: Department of Architecture
Award Level: Teaching
Thomas
Iliffe
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Year Awarded: 2013
Thomas Iliffe has been a member of the faculty at Texas A&M University at Galveston for 23 years. He earned a B.S. in biochemistry from Penn State University, an M.S. in oceanography from Florida State University and a Ph.D. in biochemistry from the University of Texas Medical Branch. Before coming to Texas A&M, he served for 11 years as a research associate at the Bermuda Biological Station. He currently teaches graduate and undergraduate marine biology courses, including Biospeleology (cave biology), Introduction to Scientific Diving, Methods in Research Diving, and Tropical Marine Ecology. All are courses he independently developed. The Tropical Marine Ecology class is approved as a study abroad program and has been taught each of the past 12 summers in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico.
Dr. Iliffe’s teaching comes from his own educational experiences. A diving-based course gave him the opportunity to investigate a coral reef ecosystem firsthand. This experience and his participation in the U.S. Navy’s Scientist in the Sea training program led him to develop the Scientific Diver training program that he has taught for the past 20 years. Dr. Iliffe also brings his research on the biology of submarine to his courses. He believes that high-impact field experiences give his students unforgettable memories and life skills for teamwork and the confidence to accomplish things they thought were impossible.
It’s not an exaggeration to say that Thomas Iliffe has influenced millions of people worldwide as well as students at A&M. His exploits have been featured as a cover story in the National Geographic magazine and on television programs produced by National Geographic, the Discovery Channel, PBS, the History Channel and a variety of international public broadcasting networks. He truly represents the finest qualities of Texas A&M faculty to people around the world.
College: Texas A&M University at Galveston
Award Level: Teaching
Ibrahim
Karaman
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Year Awarded: 2013
Ibrahim Karaman joined the faculty of the Dwight Look College of Engineering in 2000. He holds joint appointments in the Departments of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, is chair of the Materials Science and Engineering Interdisciplinary Graduate Program, and is associate director of the Texas Institute for Intelligent Materials and Structures. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His honors include a National Science Foundation CAREER Award, the Office of Naval Research Young Investigator Award, the Robert Lansing Hardy Award from The Minerals, Metals and Materials Society, and the Gary Anderson Award from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
Dr. Karaman is a highly cited and internationally recognized expert in advanced structural and functional materials with emphasis on nanostructured and multiphase structural materials and conventional and magnetic shape memory alloys. He has authored or coauthored 157 peer-reviewed journal articles, one book chapter and 24 peer-reviewed papers in conference proceedings that have been cited more than 2,000 times. He is a world authority on shape memory alloys and has made fundamental discoveries that promise to revolutionize the field. His supporters credit his distinction not only to his remarkable scientific-technical contributions but also to his leadership as an educator and his commitment to K-12 education and raising scientific curiosity among the young. A colleague writes that Professor Karaman is an energetic and effective multidisciplinary researcher who will continue to make significant impacts on materials research and education throughout the world. His research areas are at the forefront of science and materials engineering discovery, and are expected to generate continued opportunities. Another colleague adds that there is no doubt that Texas A&M and society as a whole will enjoy and benefit from his desire to make materials that will make the world a better place.
College: Department of Mechanical Engineering
Award Level: Research
Xenophon
Koufteros
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Year Awarded: 2013
Xenophon Koufteros earned his B.S.B.A .and M.B.A. from Bowling Green State University and his Ph.D. from the University of Toledo. He joined the faculty of Mays Business School in 2007. He is the recipient of numerous teaching and research awards, and is a highly active scholar. He is credited with nearly single-handedly building the Supply Chain Management (SCM) undergraduate major at Texas A&M. Through his devotion to students he has increased the number of majors from 17 when arrived to 280 today.
His nominator says, “It is no exaggeration to state that Xen was the architect for the effort to build the SCM program.” He created and headed up the SCM student group. He visited classrooms to advertise the major and explain what it was. He stayed late for company presentations and tirelessly met with scores of company representatives during the day and evening, and personally advised more than 300 students over the past five years. He also started the “resume book” to provide employers an easier way to find interested SCM students. “He has provided an enormous quantity of high quality effective service to the students of Texas A&M.”
A recruiter says, “There is not another professor I would choose to teach, coach, and mentor my own daughters.” A former student writes, “I still keep in contact with Dr. Koufteros to update him on how my job is going. . . . His interest in our lives is something that not every student is fortunate to receive.” Another former student concludes, “Dr. Koufteros . . . is a motivator and the type of teacher who gives his utmost effort every day to positively impact the future of each student. . . . I truly believe he embodies everything that this award stands for.”
College: Department of Information and Operations Management
Award Level: Individual Student Relations
Qi
Li ’91
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Year Awarded: 2013
Qi Li earned his Ph.D. in economics from Texas A&M in 1991 and began his academic career at the University of Guelph. He returned to Texas A&M as a faculty member in 1999 where he is Hugh Roy Cullen Professor in Liberal Arts. He is a Fellow of the Journal of Econometrics and currently is associate editor for six leading journals. Dr. Li is a theoretical econometrician who specializes in nonparametric econometrics. His frequently cited book Nonparametric Econometrics is the definitive text of the subfield and is a common reference source for top researchers and a textbook of choice in top graduate programs. He has published more than 100 articles in refereed journals and his publications have garnered more than 3,500 citations.
Advances in theoretical econometrics are fundamental to the advance of economic science. Econometricians are those who apply mathematics and statistics together with economics to verify economic theories. Qi Li is a leading econometrician, particularly in the area of nonparametric econometrics. He is internationally recognized for two lines of research that have had a major impact on the direction of scholarship in nonparametric econometrics. In the first case, he cracked a fundamental problem in applying the nonparametric regression modeling approach to situations involving both categorical and continuous data. This breakthrough is of huge value to all social scientists who work on problems involving discrete data. In the second case, he has developed consistency tests in the context of the nonparametric regression model that can be used to guide the choice of functional form and the choice of regressors for the regression function. These tests greatly enhance the attractiveness of the nonparametric approach to a wide audience of potential users, including non-economists. A supporter says that Li “ . . . is arguably the world’s leading researcher in nonparametric econometrics.”
College: Department of Economics
Award Level: Research
Reuben
May
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Year Awarded: 2013
Reuben May earned his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. He joined the faculty of the College of Liberal Arts in 2005. His research expertise includes race and ethnicity, urban sociology and sociology of sport. His research has been widely honored and his book, Living Through the Hoop: High School Basketball, Race and the American Dream, received the book of the year award from the Association of Humanist Sociology.
Dr. May routinely teaches Sociology of African Americans and Sociology of Sport, which both draw large numbers of students even though he prefers to teach early in the day. He has a well-deserved reputation for challenging his students to think in innovative ways and to further analyze how different perspectives relate to what is taken for granted.
He is known for engaging his students and for the enthusiasm and energy he brings to lectures. Students typically offer comments like these. “Dr. May was a prof who actually encouraged us to think and was curious about what we thought.” “He pushes for academic excellence in his students.” “Dr. May made the class exciting and worth coming to.” Indeed, Dr. May is known for different approaches including his “rhymes” and his occasional instructional rapping intermixed with the Socratic method. Another student comments, “Dr. May is an absolutely superb professor. He uses a remarkable method to get students to open their minds and think. This is the most interesting course I have ever taken at Texas A&M University.”
Dr. May was the recipient of the Dr. Martin Luther King visiting Professorship at MIT and was awarded the Sheila Biddle Ford Foundation Fellowship at Harvard University. He received three teaching awards while on the faculty of the University of Georgia.
College: Department of Sociology
Award Level: Teaching
Kenneth J.
Meier
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Year Awarded: 2013
Kenneth Meier earned his Ph.D. from Syracuse University. He joined the faculty of the College of Liberal Arts in 1998 and holds the Charles H. Gregory Chair in Liberal Arts. He is a leading authority in two areas of research—the role of public organizations in public policy and race and politics. He is the author of 20 books and more than 230 articles, essays and book chapters. His career achievement awards include the H. George Frederickson Award, the C. Dwight Waldo Award, the John Gaus Award, the Charles Levine Award and The Association of Former Students Distinguished Achievement Award in Research.
Dr. Meier has devoted extensive time, effort, and resources to mentoring graduate students at Texas A&M He has chaired 21 completed dissertations and served as a member on an additional 18 completed dissertations. He chairs three dissertations in progress and serves as the major advisor for nine other graduate students. His mentoring process begins before the student even arrives on campus. He aggressively recruits students for the graduate program and uses his own funds to bring to campus 8 to 12 students per year. When students enter the graduate program, his mentoring system focuses not just on research but on a full range of career-enhancing opportunities, ultimately including assistance with placement. His mentorship does not end when the students graduates. He has created an active network among his current and past students. They meet for dinner every year in Chicago during a national convention. The success of his mentoring is proved by the success of his students.
His contributions have been recognized nationally by the Women’s Caucus of the American Political Science Association, by the Latino Caucus of the American Political Science Association and by the Public Policy Section of the American Political Science Association.
College: Department of Political Science
Award Level: Graduate Mentoring
Saqib
Mukhtar
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Year Awarded: 2013
Saqib Mukhtar earned his Ph.D. from Iowa State University. He has been with Texas A&M for more than 14 years. He carries multiple titles, but chief among them is extension agricultural engineer. Dr. Mukhtar is renowned for his contributions in extension education, technology transfer and research to reduce the air and water quality impacts of manure and wastewater from animal feeding operations. Since 1998, his efforts have received $15 million in grant support. He has 156 publications, which are referenced by producers, technicians, engineers, and scientists worldwide. In fact, his publications on proper lagoon closure, animal mortality management, and managing odors and dust are part of the guidance provided by Texas and other states to help poultry and livestock operations meet regulatory requirements.
Dr. Mukhtar and colleagues developed the first-ever annual emission factors (EFs) regarding ammonia from dairies in the southwestern United States. Producers use these EFs to meet federal reporting rules. Dr. Mukhtar has served on expert panels regarding ammonia emissions control for the National Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy, the National Dairy Air Quality Taskforce, and the Oregon Dairy Air Quality Taskforce. He was early adopter of eXtension, a national online learning environment in which he helped establish the Livestock and Poultry Environmental Learning Center in 2008. In 2011, Dr. Mukhtar and several other university leaders working with the center received an eXtension team award for Outstanding Community of Practice. Dr. Mukhtar speaks often at livestock and poultry industry conferences, including keynote addresses or consultations in Brazil, El Salvador and Pakistan. He has earned the AgriLife Extension Superior Service Award and the G.B. Gunlogson Countryside Engineering Award from the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers.
College: Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering
Award Level: Extension, Outreach, Continuing Ed. and Prof. Dev.
Rogelio
Oliva
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Year Awarded: 2013
Rogelio Oliva earned his Ph.D. from MIT. He joined the Mays Business School faculty in 2004 and is currently a Ford Faculty Fellow. He has taught in academic programs around the world, including institutions in Spain, Chile and Mexico. He has won twelve teaching awards at four universities, including four teaching awards here at Texas A&M.
Dr. Oliva is a master of the case study method of teaching, which is generally contrasted to a lecture and lab approach. Through case study and discussion, students determine universal principles. The instructor acts as a guide, asking questions to lead students to discover these principles themselves through analysis. Case teaching can be challenging. There are no lecture notes or PowerPoint slides to read from, no book with structure to follow, and students often unveil novel analysis or statements. So a teacher must be ready to deal with a wide variety of unanticipated events. As a consequence, there are many case teachers, but not many who are proficient.
His students find him to be a demanding teacher. But he consistently attains very high student evaluations. In addition to his in-class work, he gives seminars to faculty on how to teach case studies, he has written case studies and computer simulations that are used by thousands of students each year at top universities around the world, and he has published academic peer-reviewed articles both on teaching and rigorously employing case studies as research methods.
A former student remarked that he experienced so many moments of insight in Dr. Oliva’s class that he “actually went home exhausted” from the mental exercise. Dr. Oliva is an extremely valuable asset for Texas A&M and an outstanding teacher whose energy, enthusiasm and genuine love for teaching make him a great educator.
College: Department of Information and Operations Management
Award Level: Teaching
Thomas W.
Reber
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Year Awarded: 2013
Tom Reber received a B.S. from the State University of New York at Geneseo and an M.S. from Western Illinois University. He has worked for Texas A&M for 30 years. His nominator writes that he is “the living embodiment of the Aggie core values.” His selfless service to the Aggie Community, and his spirit of giving coupled with his “let’s get it done and done well” leadership highlight the essence of his tenure at Texas A&M. He has served with distinction for many years, and his reputation for going the extra mile is inextricably intertwined with his legacy of excellence. A colleague writes, “His impact on the university is wide reaching and his dedicated service beyond the expectations of his position is without parallel.”
The evidence of his impact is best illustrated in the facilitation and guidance he provided to the following projects: the construction of the Recreational Sports facilities, the MSC renovation, the Becky Gates Children Center addition, the Joe Routt improvement project, and currently the Campus Golf Course renovation. An advocate says, “In an individual’s career, one might expect to accomplish only a single major project of this type. Tom, however, demonstrated actionable leadership to each one.” By the way, these projects are not in his position description. Yet in addition to fulfilling his assigned duties, he took responsibility and helped bring these projects to fruition . . . all for the betterment of Texas A&M students and the university.
He is enthusiastic about serving students. The current Student Body President says, “Tom will stop anything and everything to sit down and spend time with a student. He provides direction and insight into scenarios we face as students to ensure we are seeing all perspectives in every situation.” Tom Reber is revered by his colleagues, by students and by all who come in contact with him.
College: Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs
Award Level: Administration
Kenita
Rogers ’86
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Year Awarded: 2013
Kenita Rogers earned her B.S. from West Virginia University and her D.V.M. from Louisiana State University. She completed an internal medicine residency at Texas A&M, earned her M.S. and joined the College of Veterinary Medicine faculty 26 years ago. She is a Diplomate of the American College of Internal Medicine and holds the Dr. Charles H. and Mildred Kruse Bridges Chair in Veterinary Medical Education in the Office of the Dean.
Her nominator writes, “Dr. Rogers’ record in the CVM is one of sustained leadership and service to students that is superlative both in terms of breadth and effectiveness.” In a nutshell, she is outstanding because she: builds strong relationships with students based on trust, caring, respect, and fairness; helps students step out of their own boundaries; is passionate about creating and maintaining a climate that is welcoming to all; is creative and visionary in structuring the best possible learning experience; is a quintessential role model for these future veterinary professionals; and has a highly developed sense of humor that never fails to engage students in a most productive way. These interrelated qualities give her exceptional skills as a mentor and make her a visionary leader in veterinary medical education.
A supporter writes that even early in her career, “Kenita displayed the uncanny ability to both encourage her students, yet hold them accountable for their preparation and actions.” A colleague adds that she is “. . . a gifted clinician, teacher, and administrator, who has focused her considerable talents to help our veterinary students achieve their individual goals and dreams. She is tireless in her efforts for each of our students. . . .” Her nominator concludes, “. . . she is a woman of principle, integrity, and humility who helps make the CVM a great place to be.”
College: College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
Award Level: Individual Student Relations
Peter H.
Santschi
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Year Awarded: 2013
Peter Santschi earned his Ph.D. from the University of Berne, Switzerland. He joined the Texas A&M faculty with a joint appointment in the Department of Marine Sciences and the Department of Oceanography in 1988. His pioneering work and theories on the source and fate of radionuclides and colloids in the environment have become a research standard in the U.S. and abroad. Dr. Santschi has received numerous awards and recognitions, including The Association of Former Students Distinguished Achievement Award for Research. During his career, he has advised 23 graduate students and 16 post-doctoral fellows. Many of his graduates now hold senior level positions in academia, government and the private sectors in different countries.
His nominator says that although Dr. Santschi’s achievements in research are extraordinary, his “highest achievement is the guidance he has provided to generations of students while at Texas A&M University.” He goes on to say that Dr. Santschi is true mentor in all respects of the word. And his commitment to the betterment of others is not limited to the workplace or to graduate students alone. A former student comments that Dr. Santschi challenged him intellectually to raise his understanding of the concepts taught in class. He describes Dr. Santschi as “a great mentor and role model in the classroom and in the laboratory” who has an open door policy and is always available to discuss ideas, or plan the direction of experiments and who knows the delicate balance between providing direction and allowing a student to discover. Another former student writes, “Peter instilled in me a need to give back as much as I can to colleagues, fellow students, and the public. I have mentored approximately 30 graduate students since I graduated from Texas A&M . . . . I am constantly grateful for the opportunities afforded me . . . .”
College: Texas A&M University at Galveston
Award Level: Graduate Mentoring
Patricia
Smith
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Year Awarded: 2013
Patricia Smith is a Cintron University Professor for Undergraduate Teaching Excellence and the Undergraduate Program Coordinator in the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering (BAEN). Earning her B.S and M.S. from Oklahoma State University and her Ph.D. in biological and agricultural engineering from North Carolina State University, she came to Texas A&M more than 12 years ago.
Dr. Smith’s contributions extend across the broad spectrum of the undergraduate and graduate programs in BAEN and she has been recognized for her teaching accomplishments at the departmental, college and university levels. In addition to an active research program, she serves on committees across campus and contributed to both the ABET accreditation process and the reaffirmation of accreditation for Texas A&M University. Her teaching evaluations indicate very high satisfaction with her overall teaching program, especially in important categories, such as responsiveness to students, fairness in grading, teaching environment, academic concern and availability to students.
Her passion for teaching, mentoring and service to students, department and profession are summed up in the following statements from students and colleagues. “Dr. Smith has guided me through my four years at Texas A&M and continues to challenge me to be the best I can be.” “ . . .. no one has exemplified [the] core values greater than Dr. Smith.” “She is . . . ‘THE BEST’ professor I have ever come across.” “She respects and cares for every one of her students.” “She demonstrates selfless service to her department, college, university, and broader academic profession.” “Dr. Smith has made a significant difference in my life.” Her nominator concludes saying that “Students know that she will help them overcome their academic difficulties through her unique learner-centered teaching style and by motivating them to excel.”
College: Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering
Award Level: Teaching
Karen
Snowden
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Year Awarded: 2013
Karen Snowden joined the faculty of the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences in 1993. She earned her D.V.M. from Auburn University and her Ph.D. from North Carolina State University. She has received the Texas Veterinary Medical Association’s Faculty Achievement Award for Teaching, and both a Montague Scholar Award and a College-Level Teaching Award from Texas A&M.
Her research interests are in emerging protozoan parasitic infections that are important in both human and animal disease progression. She takes her research from the laboratory to her students through the variety of courses she teaches in veterinary, molecular and immunologic parasitology and the microbiologic parasitology course she teaches at the Health Science Center College of Medicine. She is also the primary faculty member who initiated and teaches “Shelter Veterinary Medicine,” an elective course for senior veterinary students who wish to provide veterinary care for locally run animal shelters.
Praise for Dr. Snowden’s effectiveness come from all levels. Undergraduate, professional, and graduate students, residents, interns, and postdoctoral fellows all have been inspired to reach higher levels in their academic careers after experiencing her motivational influence. Her students appreciate her careful presentation style and use of interesting case studies. Here are a few student comments. “I loved how she introduced the clinical aspects of the class.” “Great instructor, good pace in lectures and very clinically relevant information discussed. Very helpful in bringing it all together.” “Very passionate about the subject matter and willing to work with the students.” “In a nutshell, Dr. Snowden is the most caring and dedicated supervisor a student could have. Having been a student at four different universities and having heard some of the experiences of other graduate and undergraduate students, this makes all the difference in the world!”
College: Department of Veterinary Pathobiology
Award Level: Teaching
Arun
Srinivasa
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Year Awarded: 2013
Arun Srinivasa earned his Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley. He joined the faculty of the Dwight Look College of Engineering in 1997.
Dr. Srinivasa is an inspiring and innovative teacher who takes an active role in student engagement and classroom education. He implements his teaching philosophy through a combination of technology, active learning techniques and problem-based peer learning methods. He has applied these approaches to a wide range of courses at both the graduate and undergraduate levels as well as to the freshman engineering classes. In fact, one of his most significant contributions has been redesigning the freshman engineering classes to incorporate a project component that requires students to integrate physics and math to solve engineering tasks.
Dr. Srinivasa puts students at the center of the learning experience in class. Through interactive teaching methods, he gets the students to analyze their thought processes through a sequence of questions and answers. A colleague comments that he has an “uncanny ability to come up with examples and counter examples on the spot that enhance the critical thinking ability of students and helps them understand deep engineering concepts.” The end result is a highly effective learning environment where students are actively engaged. He adds that Dr. Srinivasa fully understands and appreciates diversity in the way students think and strives to bring out the best in each student. A student sums it up best. Dr. Srinivasa “always welcomed questions during class, after class, in office hours, or by email. He kept us up-to-date on upcoming topics and ensured we understood previous topics. . . . his lectures were always informing as well as entertaining and a pleasure to attend. Dr. Srinivasa’s best teaching quality is his welcoming demeanor; the epitome of a true Aggie.”
College: Department of Mechanical Engineering
Award Level: Teaching
Jörg M.
Steiner ’00
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Year Awarded: 2013
Jörg Steiner received his veterinary degree from the University of Munich and after additional clinical training achieved board certification with both the American and the European Colleges of Veterinary Internal Medicine. He joined the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences in 1997 and in 2000 earned his Ph.D. from Texas A&M University. He holds joint appointments in the Departments of Small Animal Clinical Sciences and Veterinary Pathobiology and serves as director of the Gastrointestinal Laboratory.
Dr. Steiner is involved in small animal gastroenterology research and mentors more than 10 graduate students. He has authored or coauthored more than 175 peer-reviewed articles, 70 book chapters and 270 research abstracts. He has edited a textbook that has been translated into five languages and holds the patent for a technology that is the basis for a new gold-standard test for the diagnosis of pancreatitis in both dogs and cats. Currently almost a million animals are tested every year using this technology. He was awarded the Bourgelat Award for truly outstanding international contributions to the field of small animal practice by the British Small Animal Veterinary Association. He has also received the Pfizer Animal Health for Research Excellence Award and is a Fellow of the American Gastroenterology Association. Currently there are approximately 1,900 fellows of the AGA, but only 5 of those are veterinarians and Dr. Steiner is one of only two veterinarians serving at a veterinary college rather than a research institute of a human medical facility.
His nominator concludes that Dr. Steiner is a good teacher, an outstanding gastroenterologist, and an excellent researcher. “The scope and quality of his research and the wide and continuing application of his discoveries . . . reflect positively on the College of Veterinary Medicine and Texas A&M University.”
College: Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences
Award Level: Research
Michael
Tomchesson ’71
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Year Awarded: 2013
Mike Tomchesson earned his B.S. and M.S. from Texas A&M. He has been employed with Texas A&M since 1991, first as an assistant lecturer, then as a lecturer, and then in his current position as facilities coordinator. In this position, he is responsible for scheduling all Health and Kinesiology (HLKN) facilities and assuring that they are well maintained and running efficiently and effectively. That alone is quite an accomplishment because two of the primary facilities are quite old and in need of major repairs. Until recently, HLKN facilities included G. Rollie White Coliseum, its annex, the Read Building, the Duly Bell Building, Netum Steed, the Challenge Course, a Riverside Campus site, Mount Aggie, several Research Park sites and Heep sites, and a tennis facility that included offices, labs, activity areas, and classrooms. However, in 2012 the majority of HLKN offices, administrative suites, classrooms, and labs were moved to the Blocker Building, Heldenfels, and the Research Park, an effort that was organized and expedited by Mike Tomchesson. In addition, he has been instrumental in the initial planning, design, and construction of the new Physical Activity Building that will house the Physical Education Activity Program. In the coming months, he—of course—will be responsible for transitioning the program from its current location in G. Rollie White to the new building on West Campus. Mr. Tomchesson serves a faculty and staff of almost 200 with the assistance of only a small cadre of student workers. And he does it amazingly. As a result, the Department of Health and Kinesiology presented him with the Janene Kissinger Outstanding Staff Award in 2009.
His nominators believe his accomplishments really fall under the heading of “Incredibly Amazing, Remarkable, and Awesome Achievement.” But, since there is not an award in that category, they wholeheartedly agreed that he is more than deserving of The Association of Former Students Distinguished Achievement Award—Staff!
College: Department of Health and Kinesiology
Award Level: Staff
Victor
Ugaz
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Year Awarded: 2013
Victor Ugaz earned his B.S. and M.S. degrees at The University of Texas at Austin and a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from Northwestern University. He joined the faculty of the Dwight Look College of Engineering in January 2003 where he holds the Kenneth R. Hall Development Professorship.
His teaching efforts have been recognized by a number of awards including the Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award, the Tenneco Meritorious Teaching Award, the Celanese Teaching Excellence Award, and the Departmental Professor of the Year Award from the student chapter of the American Institute for Chemical Engineers. His nominator says Dr. Ugaz’s passion for teaching and mentoring is a reflection of his ability to communicate with students. He incorporates innovative educational experiences in the classroom and is always working to introduce new examples from current scientific research, including his own. He also demonstrates a strong commitment to undergraduate research, having supervised 24 students, three of whom are coauthors on publications.
One of his student coauthors writes, “Apart from conducting high impact research through his out-of- the-box thinking, Professor Victor Ugaz is one of the most influential and unique educators and I feel privileged to be learning from him.” A former student writes that Dr. Ugaz’s “ability to explain complex material was exceptional, and when it required further individual attention, aside from his normal office hours, he was virtually accessible at anytime.” A former undergraduate research student credits Dr. Ugaz as having had a great influence on his research career and successes. He writes, “ . . . it was not until I had other lab experiences that I really came to value my time in Texas. Comparatively, this has been the best research learning experience . . . .”He concludes, “I consider myself extremely lucky to have worked with him.”
College: Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering
Award Level: Teaching
Tryon
Wickersham ’98
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Year Awarded: 2013
Tryon Wickersham earned his B.S. from Texas A&M and his M.S. and Ph.D. from Kansas State University. He joined the faculty of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences in 2006 and teaches graduate level courses and laboratories in animal nutrition. He also directs research in ruminant nutrition.
His nominators say that Dr. Wickersham represents “one of the best of the best teachers” in the College and praise his ability to communicate with students. His mission is to reach every student and challenge each one to do his or her individual best. Although friendly and very approachable, the courses he teaches are by their nature academically challenging. He demands that students think and assimilate major concepts, and he structures exams to fairly assess their understanding while challenging them academically. His lectures bring the subject matter to life and he uses his research to make the course current.
Dr. Wickersham has maintained impressive student evaluations for the 26 courses he has taught. This simply confirms that students appreciate his teaching abilities. A graduate student comments that when she first met Dr. Wickersham “his energy, charisma, and dedication to student success were immediately evident.” She added that she was pleasantly surprised by his ability to relay very technical concepts in an easy-to-comprehend manner. Another student says that Dr. Wickersham values education both in and outside of the classroom while exemplifying the commitment to ensuring student success. A former graduate student concludes, “Dr. Wickersham is fervently dedicated to his job; his dedication is driven by his passion to interact with students, help them realize their career and life goals, and gives them the tools necessary to develop into individuals with the capacity to fulfill and exceed those goals.”
College: Department of Animal Science
Award Level: Teaching
Cheryl
Bridges
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Year Awarded: 2012
Cheryl Bridges joined the Mays Business School in 2003 as associate director of the Center for Retailing Studies (CRS), and as the instructor for a course in retail merchandising. Mrs. Bridges holds a bachelor’s degree from Texas Woman’s University.
Before joining the Aggie family, she spent more than 25 years as a senior executive in the retailing industry. Throughout her career, Mrs. Bridges was commended for her ability to train future executives, many of whom are now at the CEO and vice president levels of major corporations. This love of teaching coupled with her retailing experience led her to Texas A&M and the Mays Business School.
As a member of the faculty in the Department of Marketing, Mrs. Bridges enjoys a reputation as an outstanding teacher who upholds high academic standards, is demanding of her students, and demonstrates a high level of commitment, dedication, and passion for teaching. She is also known to be remarkably effective in motivating students to be eager and committed learners. Her students say she is a gifted teacher, who really helps her students to understand not only the course material but how it applies to the real world of retailing. Her level of enthusiasm is amazing and it is clear to see that she loves what she is teaching.
In a letter of support, one of her colleagues says, “Cheryl Bridges is the consummate educator. Blessed with a high level of intelligence and with twenty five years of industry experience, Cheryl is absolutely wonderful in the classroom and as a resource for students. She always has time for students and takes advantage of every opportunity to teach.” Summing up, he writes “From her own outstanding classroom teaching to the outstanding teaching she provides from retail executives, the retailing education our students receive is unmatched anywhere in the world.”
College: Mays Business School
Award Level: Teaching
Marcetta
Darensbourg
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Year Awarded: 2012
At an early age Marcetta Darensbourg discovered science to be a passion that led her to pursue graduate studies at the University of Illinois, Urbana. After earning her Ph.D. in chemistry, academic appointments followed and she eventually rose through the ranks at Tulane University. In 1982, she and her husband joined the faculty at Texas A&M’s College of Science where she built a strong research program in synthetic and mechanistic organometallic chemistry while mentoring nearly 50 graduate students through to Ph.D. status. In addition, she has mentored 13 post-doctoral fellows and has regularly hosted international visiting scientists and exchange students.
Dr. Darensbourg has lectured worldwide and has served as editor-in-chief and co-editor of several inorganic source materials, including a textbook in general chemistry. She has also published more than 220 peer-reviewed journal articles. Her vitae and list of publications attest to her active research career. Although her leadership in research is a major legacy, her most visible “product” is the raft of graduate students who are enjoying successful careers in academia and other professions in the chemical community.
As a testament to her mentoring capabilities, former students write in glowing terms about Dr. Darensbourg’s energy and enthusiasm for her students and profession. One says, “Although my days as a student have been over for many years, Marcetta continues to be a mentor to me as well as to her other former students.” Another says, “Every day I aspire to provide the same supportive but rigorous mentoring that Marcetta gave to me. She instilled in me a thirst for quality, and an appreciation for the sublime in science and in my life. I feel quite lucky to have a mentor of her dedication at a crucial stage of my life.”
College: Science
Award Level: Graduate Mentoring
Kim
Dunbar
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Year Awarded: 2012
Kim Dunbar earned her Ph.D. from Purdue University in 1984 and was a postdoctoral research associate at Texas A&M in 1985-86. She has been a member of the Texas A&M faculty since 1999 and is the Davidson Professor of Science in the College of Science. Her research program spans several areas of interest in fundamental and applied research. The projects are in three general areas: magnetic and electronic molecular materials, supramolecular chemistry of anions, and metal complexes in medicinal applications.
During her distinguished career as an inorganic chemist, she has published more than 300 articles in top-tier journals and the mentored more than a hundred undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and visiting students and scholars. These numbers include 29 Ph.D. students and 6 master’s students who have gone on to successful careers in academia and industry.
Dr. Dunbar is one of the most productive inorganic chemists in the world with 9,380 citations to her credit. In addition to her research, she is a very conscientious member of the scientific community, playing a major role in national and international professional activities. She is recognized throughout the world both for her creativity and excellence in research and for her energetic participation in meetings, professional organizations, and the publication of research.
Dr. Dunbar has received many honors and awards for teaching and research. To name a few, she received the premier Teaching Award for freshman chemistry from Michigan State University, a Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award, an Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship, a Sigma Xi Research Award, and two NSF Creativity Extension Awards. She is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Chemical Society. She is the first woman in the College of Science at Texas A&M to be named a Chaired Professor.
College: Science
Award Level: Research
Mahoud
El-Halwagi
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Year Awarded: 2012
Mahoud El-Halwagi has served as professor and holder of the McFerrin Professorship in the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering in the Dwight Look College of Engineering since July 2002. He earned his Ph.D. from UCLA. Dr. El-Halwagi is known for his seminal contributions in the development of novel educational concepts, principles, and tools in the areas of sustainable design and process integration.
Dr. El-Halwagi demonstrates a remarkable level of dedication to his students, using a variety of methods to reach each and every student. His pioneering efforts have been recognized with numerous awards for teaching and scholarship, including the Faculty of the Year Award from the Texas A&M University Chapter of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, the Research Excellence Award from the American Institute of Chemical Engineers Sustainable Engineering Forum, and the Excellence in Engineering Teaching Award from Lockheed Martin.
Dr. El-Halwagi believes in teaching his students as individuals. In a letter of support, a colleague remarked that it is common to see groups of students in and around Dr. El-Halwagi’s office, waiting to ask a question or receive personalized instruction. Here is a sampling of what students have to say about Dr. El-Halwagi in their evaluations of his teaching. “He helps unconditionally; spends hours explaining materials if needed.” “Dr. El-Halwagi is one of the best professors I have ever had. He is able to get the concepts across and really makes the class understandable. I applaud him for a job well done.” “He is very concerned with whether the students really understand the questions. He is always willing to take time to help a student. He is a great professor.” And, “He has really made a positive impact on my life.”
College: Engineering
Award Level: Teaching
Tatiana
Erukhimova
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Year Awarded: 2012
Tatiana Erukhimova, earned her Ph.D. from the Russian Academy of Sciences in 1999, and came to Texas A&M in 2001 as a postdoctoral research associate, later an assistant research scientist in the Department of Atmospheric Sciences in the College of Geosciences. She joined the Department of Physics and Astronomy in the College of Science in 2006. During the first part of her teaching career she taught “Atmospheric Thermodynamics: Elementary Physics and Chemistry.” She now teaches first year physics for engineers. In addition, she teaches physics during the summer for the LEEP program, which helps incoming engineering freshman prepare for their freshman year.
Dr. Erukhimova also serves as the outreach coordinator for the Department of Physics and Astronomy. For the past five years she has organized and run the annual Physics Festival that annually attracts several thousand people of all ages to campus for an entertaining and informative day of lectures and funny, puzzling, and fascinating hands-on experiments. She also has developed the traveling Physics Show and makes presentations to off-campus organizations, ranging from elementary school classes to adult clubs and former students groups. Needless to say, Dr. Erukhimova is in high demand as a speaker at local schools, libraries, and summer camps.
Students know Dr. Erukhimova for her passion and enthusiasm for teaching, as well as for being generous with her time helping them outside the classroom. She brings creative demonstrations to class; she posts old tests on her website—with the solutions; and she is constantly introducing novel ways to explain difficult concepts. One student concludes her letter of support like this “I learned more than just physics during my freshman year in Dr. Erukhimova’s classes: I learned vital study skills, and gained an incredible role model and mentor.”
College: Science
Award Level: Teaching
Fidel
Fernandez '02
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Year Awarded: 2012
Fidel Fernandez has been a senior academic advisor with the Department of Biomedical Engineering in the Dwight Look College of Engineering for the past 13 years. He previously served as an academic advisor with General Academic Programs and in the Department of Student Affairs and in the Office of Graduate Studies. He earned his Ph.D. in educational administration from Texas A&M in 1987.
Students, colleagues, and parents have described Dr. Fernandez’s advising and individual student attention as caring, inspiring, compassionate, high quality, enthusiastic, dedicated, engaging, resourceful, resilient, and overall very helpful. He distinguishes himself through his leadership, personal interest, and demonstrated willingness to meet the needs of the students he advises. He works well with all stakeholders: students, parents, faculty, and administrators.
As senior academic advisor he works with more than 450 undergraduate students and assists with nearly 90 graduate students. He also plans undergraduate field trips and assists with data collection for program evaluation. He has even filled in as the receptionist when the department was short staffed. Outside the office, he advises A-Battery in the Corps of Cadets.
The accolades for Dr. Fernandez’ service to students is amazing! Here are a few examples. The students in the department have created a blog and named it “Fidel is the Man.” One student’s father claimed that his daughter chose A&M on the strength of hearing just one of Fidel’s presentations. The department receives several letters and emails each semester from parents expressing appreciation for the work and personal attention that Fidel has given their sons, daughters, and/or them. From all the evidence, Dr. Fernandez’ dedication, time, and effort toward student growth is clearly demonstrated and goes above and beyond the call of duty, regardless of the measure used.
College: Engineering
Award Level: Individual Student Relationships