Recognitions

Joanne Lupton Elected To Institute Of Medicine

Joanne Lupton, Distinguished Professor Nutrition and Food Science

Joanne Lupton, Distinguished Professor of Nutrition and Food Science in Texas A&M University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, has been named a member of the National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine. "Election to the (institute) is considered to be one of the highest honors in fields of health and medicine and recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding professional achievement and commitment to service," according to the institute's announcement. Lupton was one of 65 new members and five foreign associates elected this year. Founded in 1970, the Institute of Medicine has to date honored 1,778 individuals with membership. It has become recognized as a national resource for independent, scientifically informed analysis and recommendations on health issues.

Glasscock Center Names Faculty Fellows

Friday, April 25, 2008

The Melbern G. Glasscock Center for Humanities Research has named its 2008-2009 Internal Faculty Fellows. They will be resident in the Glasscock Center in spring 2009, pursuing scholarly projects under the theme “Journeys.”

The theme is conceived to embrace considerations metaphorical and literal, contemporary and historical – of migration, travel, exile, transportation, exploration, tourism and more.

The recipients of these fellowships will be released from teaching during spring 2009 and will receive a $1,000 research stipend. In the fall of 2009, they will present a symposium showcasing their work. The fellows and their projects are

Claire Katz, associate professor of philosophy and women's studies will explore, and respond to the flawed yet persistent model of education that governs the history of western philosophy and defines our contemporary views of education. The impact of this model is evident in the immediate influence it has on the educational process: the structure of the school, the content of curricula, and the pedagogical methods employed. It is also evident in how we think about and treat peoples and communities that are different from our own.

Robert R. Shandley, associate professor in the Department of European and Classical Languages and Culture, will concentrate on the recent representations of the expulsion of Germans from Eastern Europe in recent German television mini-series. Several recent series concentrate on the expulsion and the fate of millions of civilian ethnic Germans at the end of the Second World War, returning the issue to the German public imagination.

Leah DeVun, assistant professor in the Department of History, will focus on understandings of intersex from the twelfth through fifteenth centuries, a critical period for the formation of ideas about sex, as well as for the establishment of professionalized fields such as medicine, surgery, and law, which demanded a dichotomous boundary between male and female. Enter Sex examines this crucial period in detail, and it considers how premodern thinkers produced a system of sex difference that continues to influence contemporary understandings of what makes humans male or female.

April Lee Hatfield, associate professor in the Department of History, will study how the legal and geographic distinctions that made the North American mainland and Caribbean borders function differently shaped profoundly the experiences of those who moved between empires and, therefore, the relations between empires. On the mainland, where Indians as well as Europeans drew and challenged borders, colonial enmities echoed those of Europe. By contrast, in the Caribbean the Atlantic context of political and religious rivalry delimited colonists’ and merchants’ less rigidly.

Other activities around the theme “Journeys” will include a lecture series by that name, a symposium in spring 2010, and other events. The center will name further Internal Faculty Fellows for 2009-2010: a call for applications will be made in spring 2009.

Bednarz, Berry Receive Teaching Awards

Friday, April 25, 2008

Bednarz, professor of geography, was notified of her award Tuesday by surprise visits to her classroom from Texas A&M President Elsa Murano.

A renowned geography professor, Dr. Sarah Bednarz, and an internationally acclaimed marketing professor, Dr. Leonard Berry, have been named 2008 winners of Texas A&M University’s Presidential Professor for Teaching Excellence Award. With stipends of $25,000 each, these awards are believed to be the highest in monetary value of their type in the nation.

Bednarz, professor of geography, and Berry, who holds the ranks of Distinguished Professor of marketing and is holder of the M.B. Zale Chair in Retailing and Marketing and Professor of Humanities in Medicine, were notified of their awards Tuesday by surprise visits to their classrooms from Texas A&M President Elsa Murano. Formal presentation of the awards will be made at one of the university’s commencement ceremonies.

The award, established in 2003 by former President Robert M. Gates to underscore the importance of teaching at a major research university, includes the title of “Presidential Professor for Teaching Excellence” – with the recipient retaining that title for the remainder of his or her career.

“We have a highly distinguished and dedicated faculty—nationally and internationally acclaimed—and we are ever mindful that all that we are about begins with the successful and effective imparting knowledge to our students,” Dr. Murano notes. “We are firmly committed to teaching excellence, and Professors Bednarz and Berry personify that commitment.”

Bednarz came to Texas A&M in 1988 as a lecturer, having previously taught public schools at A&M Consolidated, Hearne and St. Mary’s School in Evanston, Ill. She holds degrees from Mount Holyoke College, the University of Chicago and Texas A&M.

She has published more than 70 scholarly papers and has given presentations at more than 100 conferences and symposia around the world. She is the winner of numerous awards, among them the Gilbert Grosvenor Award from the Association of American Geographers, the George Miller Award from the National Council for Geographic Education and several teaching awards from The Association of Former Students.

One of Bednarz’ students said of her teaching ability: “Besides offering me support in the classroom, Dr. Bednarz has provided me with an example of effective and engaging teaching that I hope to emulate. As a teacher, I hope to develop my own lectures as she did to connect the material to the lives of my students. I hope to provide all of my students with the level of caring and support that Dr. Bednarz gave to all of us.”

Berry joined the Texas A&M faculty in 1982 as a professor and director of the Center for Retailing Studies and, in 2001-2002, served as a visiting scientist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and Scottsdale, Ariz. He received his degrees at the University of Denver and Arizona State University.

Berry received the Paul D. Converse Award by the American Marketing Association in 2008; the Sales and Marketing Executives International’s Pinnacle Award for Marketing Educator of the Year in 2000; and is the namesake for an annual community award for customer service that was established in Brazos County in 2002. He also was named University Distinguished Lecturer at Texas A&M in 2002 and was given The Association of Former Students Distinguished Achievement Award in Research in 1996. He also created for the American Marketing Association the “Faculty Consortium,” an annual summer workshop that faculty from throughout the world attend to learn to teach and do research in emerging content areas or sub-specialties in marketing.

Berry’s nomination stems from his ability to simultaneously educate and energize his students. “His enthusiasm is contagious, his ability to integrate cutting-edge knowledge into his classes impressive, and his capacity for inspiring students legendary,” his nomination letter states.

His joint appointment in the Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine reflects the exemplary level of his teaching skills, both with students and colleagues, another nominator said. Another colleague calls Berry, “a true masterpiece of a teacher,” adding, “He motivates his students to do their best, he inspires his colleagues to reach for their potential, and he continues to demand nothing but the best from himself.”

Nominations of the recipients were made by students, faculty members and deans by each of the university’s 10 colleges. The Faculty Senate reviews each and narrows the list, and the president makes the final selections.

Writers: Keith Randall (979) 845-4644 or email at keith-randall@tamu.edu and Kelli Levey (979) 845-4645 or email at klevey@tamu.edu

Taylor elected to CRA board of directors

March 31, 2008

Dr. Valerie E. Taylor has been elected to serve on the Computer Research Association board of directors.

Dr. Valerie E. Taylor, the Royce E. Wisenbaker Professor I in Engineering and head of the Department of Computer Science at Texas A&M University, has been elected to serve a three-year term on the Computing Research Association (CRA) board of directors.

This peer-approved appointment represents a significant acknowledgment of Taylor's leadership skills and her colleagues' respect for her work in research and education in the fields of computer science and engineering.

Taylor earned her bachelor's and master's degrees from Purdue University, and her Ph.D. in electrical engineering and computer science from the University of California, Berkeley. Her research interests are in the area of high-performance computing, with particular emphasis on the performance analysis and modeling of parallel and distributed application.

CRA "is an association of more than 200 North American academic departments of computer science, computer engineering, and related fields; laboratories and centers in industry, government, and academia engaging in basic computing research; and affiliated professional societies." CRA seeks to strengthen research and advanced education in computing and allied fields by working to influence policy that affects computing research; encouraging the development of human resources; contributing to the cohesiveness of the professional community; and collecting and disseminating information about the importance and the state of computing research.

Women's Progress Awards 2008

Texas A&M University's Women's Progress Awards began as part of Women's Week in 1994. These awards are designed to honor Texas A&M students, staff, faculty, and administrators who encourage and promote sensitivity to and awareness of issues that relate to women. Each recipient receives a plaque and $250.00.

2008 Recipients:

Judith Bohr (student) '09, Philosophy

Kathy Pilgrim (staff) Senior Office Associate, Department of the Center for Employee Education

Nancy Amato (faculty) Professor, Computer Science

Karan Chavis (administrator) Executive Director for Administrative Services

Castillo Nationally Recognized For Contributions To Counseling Psychology

Linda Castillo, Associate Professor of Counseling Psychology

Linda Castillo, associate professor of counseling psychology, was awarded the Many Faces of Counseling Psychology award at the 2008 International Counseling Psychology Conference in Chicago. This award recognizes faculty nationally who are undertaking innovative, creative and adaptive work that integrates the science and practice of counseling psychology and incorporates values of social justice and multicultural competence into their contributions.

Castillo’s leadership and work with the GEAR-UP Project (Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs) was especially noted as an example of her work that led to this recognition.