UCSC Honors 11 Faculty Members For Excellence In Teaching

Chancellor M.R.C. Greenwood (front, right) and Campbell Leaper (back, far left), chair of the Committee on Teaching, joined this year’s teaching award recipients at a recent reception at University House. Pictured are: (back, from left) Leaper, Michael Dalbey, Zack Schlesinger, Helen Shapiro, John Isbister, David Hoy, Cynthia Polecritti, Paul Rangell, Russell Flegal, Shelley Stamp; (front, from left) Paul Nauert, Gary Miles, and Chancellor Greenwood.

At the same reception at University House, 10 teaching assistants also received awards for outstanding work. Pictured are: (l-r, front row) Marilyn Chap, Priya Ganguli, Archita Sengupta; (back row) Chris Goff, Lowell Boone, Steve Lonhart. Not pictured are Jennifer Jipson, Valerie Kaussen, Jason Merchant, and Catherine Newman.

A UCSC academic committee has selected the recipients of the 1997-98 Excellence in Teaching Awards. The 11 professors and lecturers were nominated for the award by students, who described their teachers as inspirational, enthusiastic, and passionate.

Chancellor Greenwood presented each winner with a framed certificate and a $500 award at a ceremony at University House earlier this month.

In selecting the award recipients, the Committee on Teaching evaluated nomination letters from students, endorsement letters from department chairs, and statements on teaching from the nominees themselves. The Committee on Teaching views the Excellence in Teaching Awards as an important act of peer recognition for colleagues whose work as instructors is exemplary and inspiring.

The names of this year’s recipients follow below, along with the wording that appears on their certificates.

• Michael Dalbey (lecturer in biology) for inspiration, contagious enthusiasm, and unending patience in guiding hundreds of students through complex and detailed material successfully.
• A. Russell Flegal (professor of environmental toxicology and earth sciences) for captivating enthusiasm, energy, and creativity in teaching; for never underestimating students’ intellect or potential; and for instilling a sense of independence and accomplishment in all students.
• David Hoy (professor of philosophy) for thoughtful, serious, precise, and inspirational teaching that provides a clear path through diverse, esoteric, and subtle material and for deep commitment to students’ learning.
• John Isbister (professor of economics) for exceptional commitment, involvement, and enthusiasm; for encouraging students’ wholehearted engagement with learning; and for fostering an atmosphere of mutual respect in the classroom.
• Gary Miles (professor of history) for a deep commitment to undergraduate teaching that emphasizes personal engagement, a spirit of cooperation, community, and the importance of how to study and learn.
• Paul Nauert (assistant professor of music) for astoundingly intelligent, energetic, and deeply committed teaching that renders complex materials with crystal clarity, making them accessible and exciting for students.
• Cynthia Polecritti (associate professor of history) for enthusiastic, well-organized, effective teaching; for passionate insistence on engagement with original sources; and for genuine dedication to the education and well-being of undergraduates.
• Paul Rangell (lecturer in art) for passion and energy in teaching lithography, for dedication to preserving and passing on the knowledge and history of printmaking, and for total commitment to awakening the creative potential in students and steering them toward full realization of their ideas.
• Zack Schlesinger (professor of physics) for enthusiasm, sincerity, dynamism, flexibility, and inventiveness; for persistently trying out new ideas in the classroom; and for educating beyond the confines of the physics curriculum.
• Helen Shapiro (associate professor of sociology) for engaging, inspiring, dedicated teaching that demystifies economics, integrates research, and brings out the very best in students, and for extraordinary versatility in teaching for three different departments.
• Shelley Stamp (assistant professor of film and video) for a mesmerizing style of teaching that transcends the typical lecture format and challenges students to perform at their peak in a classroom environment conducive to learning.