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CASE,
Carnegie Name Top U.S. Professors of the Year
Washington,
D.C.—Four
educators who are transforming math, science and engineering
education are the national winners of the 2007 U.S. Professors
of the Year Award. Sponsored by The Carnegie Foundation
for the Advancement of Teaching and administered by the
Council for Advancement and Support of Education, the
awards recognize professors for their influence on teaching
and their outstanding commitment to undergraduate students.
A state Professor of the Year was also recognized in
40 states and the District of Columbia.
The 2007 U.S. Professors of the Year will be honored today
at a luncheon and awards ceremony at the Willard InterContinental
Washington in Washington, D.C., where they will provide remarks
following introductions by former students.
The four national winners are:
- Outstanding Baccalaureate Colleges Professor
of the Year: Glenn W. Ellis, associate professor
of engineering, Smith College, Northampton, Mass. Ellis
joined the faculty at the renowned women’s college
to help create the first engineering program specifically
designed for women. He established a partnership between
the engineering and education faculty that benefited
the students of both programs. Using learner-centered
pedagogy that is based upon research on learning, the
program has drawn national recognition as a model of
engineering education reform.
- Outstanding
Community Colleges Professor of the Year: Rosemary M.
Karr, professor of mathematics,
Collin County Community College, Plano, Texas. After
leaving a four-year university to teach at a community
college, Karr discovered her true passion: developmental
mathematics. Using a holistic approach that empowers
students, boosts their self-confidence and provides a
strong foundation in mathematics, Karr developed a program
that helps students master the basics and gain confidence
to tackle subsequent math courses. Participants also
put their math skills to work by tutoring at-risk young
people.
- Outstanding
Doctoral and Research Universities Professor of the Year:
Christopher M. Sorensen, University
Distinguished Professor of Physics, Kansas State University,
Manhattan, Kan. Sorensen believes that learning should
be placed in students’ hands, literally. In one
of 130 lab demonstrations he created for an engineering
physics course, students jump off tables holding cups
of water to experience a moment of zero gravity. A similar
hands-on concept Sorensen developed for teaching applied
optics was awarded a $1.2 million grant from the National
Science Foundation. In teaching Physics 101, Sorensen
replaces standard textbook content with readings from
the original work of great scientific minds such as Galileo,
Newton and Einstein.
- Outstanding
Master’s Universities and Colleges
Professor of the Year: Carlos G. Spaht, professor
of mathematics, Louisiana State University in Shreveport,
Shreveport, La. A veteran teacher with 35 years in the
classroom, Spaht remains convinced that there is always
more to learn about teaching and motivating students.
Spaht builds rapport with students as a pathway to learning,
reaching them through a combination of lectures, small
interactive groups and class projects. In one of his
favorite courses, he teaches math majors to prove math
theorems themselves. Spaht also created a two-year program
that helps prepare underserved middle and high school
students for college programs in math, science and engineering.
The U.S. Professors
of the Year program, created in 1981, is the only national
initiative specifically designed to recognize excellence
in undergraduate teaching and mentoring.
“This year’s
four national Professors of the Year have had a tremendous
impact on teaching and student learning in math, science and engineering at
their institutions, in their communities and beyond,” says John Lippincott,
president of CASE. “They exemplify teaching at its best, bringing a commitment
to student learning and a passionate devotion to their field of study that
inspires students and challenges them to take on even the most demanding subjects.”
Lee
S. Shulman, president of The Carnegie Foundation for the
Advancement of Teaching, notes that these teachers are “exemplars
for all of us in the community of educators.”
“They have demonstrated
a dedication to their fields and to their profession and
have used their own wisdom in ways that motivate and transform
their students,” Shulman
says. “They instill both deep understanding and a love
of learning, those dual accomplishments to which all fine
teachers aspire.”
This year’s U.S.
Professors of the Year winners were selected from a pool
of more than 300 nominees. Judges select a national winner
in each of four categories—baccalaureate
colleges, community colleges, doctoral and research universities,
and master’s universities and colleges—and then
name state winners from other entries that meet the program’s
demanding criteria.
TIAA-CREF, a financial
services and retirement investment organization, is the primary
sponsor for the awards ceremony. Phi Beta Kappa, an academic
honorary, will sponsor an evening Congressional reception
for the winners at the Folger Shakespeare Library.
Other sponsors include
the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, the
American Association of Community Colleges, the American
Association of State Colleges and Universities, the American
Association of University Professors, the
Association of Community College Trustees, the Association
of Jesuit Colleges and Universities, the Council of Independent
Colleges and the National Council of University Research
Administrators.
About Carnegie: Founded
by Andrew Carnegie in 1905 and chartered in 1906 by an
act of Congress, The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement
of Teaching is an independent policy and research center
with a primary mission "to do and perform all things
necessary to encourage, uphold and dignify the profession
of the teacher and the cause of higher education." The
improvement of teaching and learning is central to all
of the work of the foundation.
About CASE: The Council for
Advancement and Support of Education is one of the largest
international associations of education institutions, serving
more than 3,300 universities, colleges, schools and related
organizations in 55 countries. CASE is the leading resource
for professional development, information and standards
in the fields of education fundraising, communications
and alumni relations.
About TIAA-CREF: TIAA-CREF
is a national financial services organization and the leading
provider of retirement services in the academic, research,
medical and cultural fields. |
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