2016 Faculty and Staff Awards
Dec 16, 2016
We would like to take the opportunity to recognize and celebrate the contributions from our faculty and staff that have been made throughout this momentous year.
Lisa Campbell, Shannon Ferrell, Erik Moortgat, Debra Stark, and Hongbin Zhan are celebrating 20 years of service in the college. Laura Caldwell, Patrick Edwards, Lee Linwood, Robert Mitchell, John Nielsen-Gammon, Alex Orsi, Richard Orville, Lisa Reichert, and Niall Slowey are celebrating 25 years. And finally, Gudelia Delgado, Jerry North, and Edward Webb are celebrating 30 years.
There were two recipients for this year’s Dean’s Achievement Award for Exemplary Staff Services:
Michael Cannon serves as technical staff for the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP). James Rosser (Manager of Development, IT & Databases, IODP) had this to say about Michael: “Mike Cannon is a remarkably gifted and motivated professional who consistently thinks ‘out of the box’ when solving problems and always stands ready to assist teammates and customers alike… In every instance, Mr. Cannon’s distinctive accomplishments reflect unyielding dedication to mission and extraordinary service in support of operations onboard the JOIDES Resolution.”
The second recipient was Kristine McRoberts, Data Analyst for the Dean’s Office. The GeoBusiness team remarked: “Kristy has made a tremendous contribution to the streamlining of business processes. She has saved staff hundreds of hours of mind-numbing work and freed them to better utilize their resources. She has done so quickly. She has done so responsively. She has done so brilliantly.”
The Dean’s Distinguished Achievement Award for Faculty Excellence in Teaching went to Andrew Klein, Professor in Geography. One of his students, Reese Dunn ’12, had the following to say: “Dr. Andrew Klein is clearly an outstanding professor, researcher, and mentor; but I believe, above all else, he is an exceptional educator. Beyond the influences of his direct transfer of knowledge, Andrew has impacted how I learn. He taught the conceptual approach to understanding science and technology, which will serve me for not only the remainder of my career, but also the remainder of my life.”
The Dean’s Distinguished Achievement Award for Faculty Excellence in Research went to Hongbin Zhan, Professor in Geology & Geophysics. David Sparks, Professor & Associate Department Head of Geology & Geophysics, added: “Dr. Zhan is an amazingly prolific scientist. [His] impressive research record has been compiled while he was also making significant contributions to our department’s missions in teaching and service. Hongbin Zhan has been an inspiration to a generation of students and colleagues. His amazing stretch of research productivity over the last several years does not actually appear to be a peak, but part of a continuing upward trend that will continue for years.”
The 2016 Distinguished Achievement College-Level Teaching Award recipients are Anita Rapp, Assistant Professor in Geology & Geophysics, and Mary Jo Richardson, Regent’s Professor in Oceanography and Geology & Geophysics. The award was started in 1982 by the Association of Former Students in which they fund awards to honor faculty members who demonstrate unwavering dedication to teaching.
“Where Anita especially excels is that she is capable of walking that teaching fine line: she clearly shows she cares about students and bonds with them in a shared academic experience, yet she does not compromise on rigor or expectations… it is when students respect and admire a teacher that obviously holds them to high standards that you are witnessing a superior college classroom educator,” said Don Conlee, Instructional Professor in Atmospheric Sciences.
“Dr. Richardson is one of the true heroes of our university and generations of Aggies have benefited and continue to benefit from her tireless efforts to enhance the student experience at TAMU. Her body of work speaks for itself, and it is impossible to highlight all that she gives to her students and colleagues,” added Debbie Thomas, Interim Dean.
Thank you for your dedication and hard work!
