Convocation Award Winners
See Also: College Marshal | Advising | Outreach | Research | Teaching | Loyrane W. Lester Award
The quality of a college is a direct reflection of the quality of its faculty and staff. Below is a list of awards given at the Fall 2008 College Convocation.
To view the complete program, CLICK HERE. To view a picture of each award winner, click on there name.
College Marshal
Each year the College of Arts and Sciences recognizes a member of its senior faculty who has demonstrated outstanding service to the College of Arts and Sciences and to the University of Tennessee. This person is asked to serve as College Marshal and thereby represents the College at Winter Convocation and at the fall and spring commencement ceremonies. This designation is the highest honor that the College bestows on a member of its faculty.
This year’s College Marshal is Jeffrey M. Becker, professor and head of the Department of Microbiology. During his more than thirty-five years at the university, he has served as the founding director of the Graduate Program in Cellular, Molecular, and Developmental Biology (1979 to 1995), the founding director of the UT-ORNL Graduate School in Genome Science and Technology (1998 to 2005), and head of the Department of Microbiology (2002 to present). Dr. Becker has published more than 220 peer-reviewed articles and serves on the editorial board of Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy and as associate editor of Microbiology. He has been awarded grants from many agencies, including the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, and the American Cancer Society, and he is an internationally renowned expert in several fields, including the molecular biology of membrane transport, the structure and function of peptide pheromones/hormones and their receptors, and the discovery of fungal virulence factors.
Advising
In his article “A Learning Centered View of Teaching as Advising,” author Marc Lowenstein states “An excellent advisor does for students’ entire education what an excellent teacher does for a course: helps them order the pieces, put them together to make a coherent whole, so that a student experiences the curriculum not as a checklist of discrete, isolated pieces but instead as a unity, a composition of interrelated parts with multiple connections and relationships.” Today we honor four faculty who embody this guiding principle that “Advising is teaching.”
Dr. David Lee, Associate Professor of German, is the first recipient of the Departmental Advising Award. As Dr. Lee’s nearly forty-year career in the College of Arts and Sciences comes to a close this semester, we are proud to recognize him for his long term commitment to the success of undergraduate students in German and the Language and World Business programs.
Associate Professor of Art, Dr. Suzanne Wright, is the second recipient of the Departmental Advising Award. As the Associate Director of the School of Art, Dr. Wright works with each student who enters the University declaring an interest in Art. She advises 125-150 students each term, maintaining the advising relationship from freshman orientation until they pass their Portfolio Review at the end of the sophomore year.
Dr. Beth Mullin, Professor of Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology and Director of the Division of Biology, is the first recipient of the Advising Services Advising Award. In addition to carrying a large advising caseload in her department and maintaining a rigorous research agenda, Dr. Mullin volunteers her time each week to work with undecided students as well as students with a pre-health interest.
The Advising Services Award also goes to Dr. Anthony J. Nownes, Professor of Political Science. Since 2003, Dr. Nownes has served as an advisor in Advising Services and has consistently been one of the department’s most requested advisors, with students returning to seek his advice term after term and referring their peers to him, as well.
Outreach
The College of Arts and Sciences honors excellence in academic outreach with four faculty awards this year. The recipients are recognized for their extraordinary outreach scholarship in teaching, research, and service.
Daniel M. Feller, professor of history, is honored for extraordinary outreach teaching. His outreach teaching has occurred through Faculty Speakers Bureau engagements, professional development classes for history teachers, consulting to documentary filmmakers, and contributing to East Tennessee History Day (part of the National History Day competition) which brings hundreds of middle and high school students to campus.
Sally P. Horn, professor of geography, is honored for extraordinary outreach research. She developed the UT GK-12 Earth Project and secured nearly $2 million from the National Science Foundation to fund it. The project tests a new model for geoscience research partnerships that involves advanced graduate students, university faculty, teachers, and middle school students.The GK–12 project has brought the excitement of research to 7 rural middle schools in 4 school districts of East Tennessee.
Norman E. Magden, professor of art, is honored for outreach service as a board member and officer (in four cases as president of the board) of five major arts organizations in Knoxville and as the university representative on five important task forces, including the Arts, Culture, and Entertainment Master Plan Initiative for Greater Knoxville; the Museum District Task Force; the Nine Counties. One Vision. Arts and Culture Task Force; and the Public Art Committee of the City of Knoxville which he currently chairs.
Daniel M. Roberts, professor of biochemistry and cellular and molecular biology, is recognized for his extraordinary outreach service as director since 2006 of the Tennessee Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (TJSHS)—one of forty-eight such programs nationwide funded by the Academy of Applied Science- which encourages Tennessee high school students to engage in original research, to write and submit scientific papers for presentation at an annual symposium.
Research
Award for New Research, Scholarly and Creative Projects in the Arts and Humanities
This year’s recipient is Associate Professor Ernest Freeberg of the Department of History. The project that Ernie will pursue concerns the research and writing for a book about the cultural history of the light bulb, a perhaps “lowly” but ubiquitous invention. The project will consider the evolution of the invention into a common technology that impacted factory operations, city planning, transportation & advertising, and perhaps, most importantly, the evolution of America from a rural to an urban society.
Junior Faculty Research/Creative Achievement Award
Assistant Professor Kathleen Buckley from the Department of Theatre. Kathleen has a national reputation as a director of theatre, particularly with respect to Shakespeare that began prior to her arrival at UTK. Her directing skills are highly sought at venues such as Next Theatre (Chicago), Milwaukee repertory Theatre, Utah Shakespearean Theatre, American Players Theatre, and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. The entire campus will be able to view the results of Kathleen’s directing in the Spring Semester with the play, Copenhagen, at the Clarence Brown Theatre.
Assistant Professor Taylor Feild from the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. Taylor’s research focuses on the early evolution of flowering plants interrelating perspectives from physiology and morphological studies with molecular phylogenetic analyses. In the last two years, Taylor has had nine papers published or in press, including contributions to Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and a cover paper with commentary in New Phytologist. Internationally, Taylor’s work involves southeast Asia and the southern Pacific, and he has recruited a graduate student from Papua, New Guinea.
Senior Faculty Research/Creative Achievement Award
Professor Barry Bruce from the Department of Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology. Barry’s work as a plant scientist with a focus on energy transfer during plant photosynthesis has evolved into expertise and biological strategies to harvest solar radiation, devices to convert solar energy to hydrogen production and integration of photosynthetic complexes into photovoltaic devices. Barry’s research has or is supported by NSF, USDA, DOE, DOD, EPA, and Proctor & Gamble. Recently, in recognition of the potential importance to society of his research, Forbes recognized Barry as one of Ten People that may Change the World.
Professor Ken Stephenson from the Department of Mathematics. It is safe to say that Ken’s passion for investigating the nature, implications and applications of circle packing have lead to him becoming a recognized world expert in the matter. “Circle packing” is a powerful tool for the computation of conformal maps that are transform one domain into another with practical applications such as mapping the human brain. In recent years, Ken has worked to create a software package, CirclePack to enable others to conduct experiments that apply circle-packing approaches (take a visit at http://www.math.utk.edu/~kens/#Zoo)
Teaching
Nathan Sanders, Associate Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, describes his undergraduate teaching style as one of “actively engaging undergraduate students in the process of science.” Students say that Dr. Sanders is “passionate about [his] subject” and call him a “dynamic, engaging” teacher. They often say that the classes they have taken with Dr. Sanders are among the best they have taken at the University.
Kenton Yeager, Associate Professor of Theatre, was the primary force behind the development of a concentration in lighting design as part of the Theatre Department’s M.F.A. program. The lighting design concentration tightly integrates in-class lectures with practical experience, and has been praised as a model by the University Resident Theatre Association. A Tony Award-winning lighting designer describes Prof. Yeager as “the most lively and engaging lighting designer who teaches I have ever met.”
Michael McKinney, Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences, is called an “engaging” teacher by his peers, who note that he has a special talent for stimulating student comments and discussions, even in relatively large lower-division courses. He focuses his in-class lectures by constructing them from several small modules that each showcase one important concept, one key fact, and a graphical or visual depiction of the fact and concept. Students in his courses routinely describe Dr. McKinney’s contributions to his courses as outstanding.
John Koontz, Professor of Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology, uses small-group exercises and personal response systems, or “clickers”, to keep students engaged during lectures and to obtain immediate feedback on their understanding of the lecture material. Dr. Koontz also pioneered the development of a graduate-level course in scientific ethics, a course that was so well-received by students and faculty alike that it has become a requirement for graduate students in Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology.
Elizabeth Sutherland, Associate Professor of Classics, played an instrumental role in the development of the Classics Department’s diversity plan, and during academic year 2007-2008, chaired a College committee charged with drafting a College-wide diversity plan. As faculty advisor to the Lambda Student Union since 2002, Dr. Sutherland has also worked “at the ground level” to make the University a more welcoming and inclusive place for diverse populations.
Lorayne W. Lester Award
The Lorayne W. Lester Award was established in 2002 by the College of Arts and Sciences’ Board of Visitors/Associates, faculty, staff, and friends to honor Dr. Lester for her dedicated service and leadership as dean from 1996-2002. This annual award recognizes a faculty or staff member who has demonstrated outstanding service to the University of Tennessee, the College of Arts and Sciences, or any of the various constituencies reached locally, statewide, or nationally.
Rosalind I. J. Hackett's unique contribution to linking her research, teaching, mentoring, and outreach activities has culminated in "Jazz for Justice" (JfJ), a project she founded in 2006 and has successfully continued in 2007 and 2008 (www.knoxjazzforjustice.org). The project seeks to promote psycho-social healing and education—notably through the use of music and the arts—for young people (especially girls and young women) in war-affected Northern Uganda. In seeking to raise awareness of the needs of young people in Northern Uganda, the JfJ Project has also organized a major conference at UTK with Ugandan speakers as well as symposia, workshops, film showings, lectures in the community, and an African dance party. It has facilitated travel to and internships in Uganda for several UTK students and organized several lobbying trips to Washington, D.C. The project works with a number of Ugandan organizations such as the Northern Uganda Girls Education Network (NUGEN), ChildReach Africa, the Acholi Religious Leaders Peace Initiative, HEALS, and the Anglican Diocese of Northern Uganda, and it supports musicians in Northern Uganda who work for peace and social reconstruction.
