Dean Sapiro announced the winners of the 2015 Templeton Award for Excellence in Student Advising and the 2015 CAS Teaching Awards during the final faculty meeting of the semester on April 27. Congratulations to all!
2015 CAS Teaching Awards
Each year, CAS honors a select group of faculty members for their outstanding work in the classroom—as instructors, motivators, and resources for their students. Congratulations to Walter Hopp, Manher Jariwala, Catherine Connell, and Sarah Madsen Hardy, Peter Buston, and Susan Mizruchi. You can read their full award citations here.
The Gitner Award for Distinguished Teaching in the College of Arts & Sciences
Walter Hopp
Associate Professor of Philosophy
Hopp’s course evaluations overflow with superlatives (they call his ability to awaken their philosophical interest the “Hopp effect”). His syllabi are minutely thought through. He is a crystal clear presenter, with impressive stamina in the face of interrogation. He doesn’t just teach about philosophy: his assignments require students to produce philosophical arguments and rigorous self-analysis. He earns special praise as a coach for honors thesis writers, including several Alumni Writing Award winners. One student writes: “He actively kept me away from philosophical mistakes, but not in a way that stifled my creativity.”
The Neu Family Award for Excellence in Teaching in the College of Arts & Sciences
Manher Jariwala
Lecturer in Physics
Jariwala is a man on a pedagogical mission of ever-expanding scope and impact. An outstanding instructor in his own right, he earns near-perfect scores from captive audiences who take physics as a requirement for other majors. “Yes, he WILL know your name, and he WILL help you do well,” writes one student. Adds another: “Trust me, if electromagnetism doesn’t agree with you, take his class and it will.” A third concludes: “Helpful, approachable, and engaging. One of the best at BU.”
The Frank and Lynne Wisneski Award for Excellence in Teaching in the College of Arts & Sciences
Catherine Connell
Assistant Professor of Sociology
Connell’s passion and talent for teaching blows students away. She devises incredibly creative assignments, and balances high expectations with a genuine way of relating to students. Her exemplary facilitation style creates an intensely challenging but safe environment for exploring stigmatized topics. Students develop a strong sense of collective responsibility and passion for their intellectual growth. Writes one: “We continued to raise the bar every class as we dug deeper and deeper into re-thinking the role of a sociologist.”
The College of Arts & Sciences Award for Distinction in First Year Undergraduate Education
Sarah Madsen Hardy
Senior Lecturer in the Writing Program
Madsen Hardy had already made her mark in and beyond the Writing Program. She helped develop the program’s use of e-portfolios, information literacy initiative, and collaborations with high school teachers. She co-edited the journal WR and mentored Boston Community Service scholars. Her impact still begins in the classroom. Students who usually “hate” writing praise her thorough feedback and ability to interest them in the writing process. Says one student: “I worked so hard in this class, but Sarah never overwhelmed us.” Adds another: “She taught us things that will last a lifetime.”
The College of Arts & Sciences Dean’s Award for Excellence in Graduate Education
Peter Buston
Assistant Professor of Biology
Peter Buston’s lucid, believable, infectiously enthusiastic account of why he loves to teach is a perfect illustration of why he’s so good at it. Undergraduates in his large introduction to marine biology course described him as “extraordinarily clear, honest, and thoughtful.” At the graduate level, students give much credit to his expert tutelage for their exceptional record of 10 NSF Gradate Research awards over the past three years. Professor Buston’s graduate students’ record of placing first-authored papers, landing dream jobs, and securing post-docs demonstrates how effectively he challenges them to strive for excellence and prepares them for the cooperative/competitive world of modern science.
Susan Mizruchi
Professor of English
Susan Mizruchi has made a vocation and brilliant career of graduate education. In her 30 years of teaching American literature and (increasingly) film at BU, she has been a first reader on an equal number of dissertations, and has served on a staggering total of 75 qualifying exam committees in English, American Studies, and Religion. The sheer range and quantity of this engagement would be significant even without reference to the wisdom and skill of her mentoring on her scrupulous, unstinting dedication to each student with whom she agrees to work.
2015 Templeton Award for Excellence in Student Advising
The recipients of the Templeton Advising Award received strong praise from their advisees for their advice, encouragement, and willingness to go above and beyond to make themselves available to students. Congratulations to Lucy Hutyra, Daniel Erker, and Phillip Haberkern.
Lucy Hutyra
Assistant Professor of Earth & Environment
Hutyra’s nominators praised both her propensity to give “good advice” and her willingness to serve as a mentor. She has a straight-forward approach which is reflected in the following comment from one of her nominators. “I felt panicked as a first semester freshman and was sure that I wasn’t a fit for science…I went to Hutyra to share my anxiety and she very calmly and directly told me that I was capable of doing the major if I wanted to and that she thought I should tough it out.” That same student reports that four years later, “I’m now slated to have my name on several publications in scientific journals from the work I’ve done as an undergraduate. Lucy’s confidence in me as a capable student and researcher directed my undergraduate career and I’m so grateful for all of her help and words of wisdom.”
Daniel Erker
Assistant Professor of Spanish and Linguistics
Erker’s nomination included praise for his teaching and his advising. On student commented that, “as a teacher, Professor Erker not only creates an environment where every student feels comfortable enough to participate and share their unique experience, but also one where we are all challenged to think beyond our comfort zones; bringing topics such as gender, socioeconomic class, and race into the discussion of linguistics…As a mentor/advisor, he actively listens to what student’s goals are, both personally and academically, before giving thoughtful advice that gives guidance, rather than easy answers, and empowers students to take control of their education at this University.”
Phillip Haberkern
Assistant Professor of History, Director of Undergraduate Studies
Haberkern’s nominators, which included his department chair, commented on his dedication to advising and ability to push students to do their best. One student put it well when he commented that “Professor Haberkern challenged me to find interesting projects to wrap up my senior year…Because of his help and advice I was able to travel to Kenya during the summer through UROP for research. As I am finishing up the thesis these final weeks, I have had multiple job interviews [and] I have received offers from all of them, all top 25 law firms. In essence, Professor Haberkern pushed my academic work to be exciting and applicable for life.”
The Graduate School of Arts & Sciences also announced the 2015 Outstanding Teaching Fellow Award winners at the Teaching Fellow award reception on May 1.