Top faculty, students honored for excelling

By Amy Geiszler-Jones and Julie Rausch

Excellence in the classroom, laboratory and creative efforts will be celebrated during WSU’s Honors Convocation at 10 a.m. Saturday, March 9, in the Lowe Auditorium, Hughes Metropolitan Complex.

Eight faculty members will be honored this year. Nearly 800 students in various honor societies and holding at least a 3.75 grade point average have been invited to be recognized. A number of graduate students will be given awards, as well.

Shirley Staples Carter, director of the Elliott School of Communication, will be the convocation speaker.

Excellence in Creative Activity

Victor Markovich, professor of music

In his 12 years at WSU, Markovich has been in constant motion, bringing music to anyone who will listen. He oversees the WSU band program including WSU’s Concert Band, the Shocker men’s and women’s basketball bands, and he is conductor for WSU’s Symphonic Wind Ensemble, which has performed at national, regional and state music conventions.

WSU’s Symphonic Wind Ensemble has been heralded as one of the finest university bands in the nation, receiving national critical acclaim for its emotional and technically crafted performances. The ensemble performed March 6 at the National Convention of the American Bandmaster’s Association convention, hosted by WSU. The ABA members represent 250 of the most important and influential conductors and composers of the band world. Markovich is one of five total ABA members from Kansas in its 72-year history.

Markovich has brought in guest band conductors and composers from all over the country, scheduled guest residencies and done a few residencies of his own including ones at Arizona State University, the University of Iowa and Northeast Missouri State University. He has brought outside band directors and students to special campus events such as open rehearsals, clinics and seminars. WSU’s band program has grown from 88 to 175 students during the past dozen years.

"I feel very fortunate that I get to do what I enjoy and love, not only here, but all over the country," Markovich says. "It is very important to me to bring the joys of music into the lives of others."

WSU’s bands have performed at every major music band convention in the country through national refereed processes, and Markovich has served as guest conductor in more than 20 states and in seven countries.

Excellence in Research Award

Paul Rillema, professor and chair, department of chemistry

In his research, Rillema is always looking for the light – literally.

For the past 20 years his research has focused on solar energy conversion. He creates materials, by attaching organic material to rare metals, to determine their ability to absorb sunlight and then emit light. The underlying motivation for this research is to find another viable energy source that will either conserve or replace the Earth’s fossil fuel resources.

"In another 200 years or so we’ll absolutely need to have another source of energy," says Rillema, noting that at their present rate of use oil supplies are predicted to last 50 years, natural gas 100 years and coal 200 years. "No one perceives any one source as replacing fossil fuels but the one that has the most potential is solar energy conservation.

"There has to be a discovery that will meet the energy needs of humans and a discovery that will allow life to continue."

His professional contribution in the understanding of photochemistry and photophysics has been substantial – he’s published more than 125 articles in many of chemistry’s best journals and has made more than 130 presentations all over the world.

His expertise in photochemistry has led him to collaborate on a rather unique project recently – that of determining light emissions of a co-enzyme in human blood. Since 2000, he’s consulted with the Center for the Improvement of Human Functioning, comparing the light emissions of blood serum of healthy individuals and those suffering from a metabolic disease such as cancer. The light emissions, believed to come from the co-enzyme NADH, are markedly reduced in cancer patients. This research could make possible the development of a probe to diagnose metabolic diseases during annual physicals, according to Rillema.

If securing grants is an indication of productivity, Rillema, who has been at WSU since 1994, has been successful in that realm, as well. About half the more than $6 million in grants he’s received, however, have helped purchase instrumentation for both him and fellow faculty members and have enhanced chemistry education. In the past year alone, Rillema and colleague Erach Talaty have secured multi-year grants to start three new programs to attract and mentor undergraduate and graduate students. For one program, funded by the National Science Foundation, WSU will be one of five sites in the United States that will invite faculty at two- and four-year institutions who have limited research opportunities, to conduct research with WSU faculty. It’s hoped that those faculty will return to their institutions rejuvenated and even more enthusiastic about chemistry.

Rillema also was an integral part of the successful renovation of WSU’s McKinley Hall, which was rededicated in September. He helped oversee the renovation and the complementary campaign to buy up-to-date instrumentation.

Excellence in Teaching Award

Stephen Brady, associate professor, department of mathematics and statistics

For Brady, a teacher’s responsibilities are as simple as "prepare, care, be fair and be there." Judging by his student’s comments and Brady’s record of finding ways to help students succeed in classes that many have anxieties about, he’s gone beyond those responsibilities.

When a math course became a graduation requirement for all WSU students, he developed and has since directed the department’s college algebra program. To curb the high dropout and failure rate common in algebra courses at all universities, a number of placement and assessment criteria were developed, as well. Not a single student is able to enroll in the college algebra class without first calling Brady at the office or at home, giving him the opportunity to discuss with several hundred students a semester their mathematical backgrounds, goals and study habits. If they have math anxiety, he tries to help them overcome that.

Brady, who joined the WSU faculty in 1967, says he feels one way to measure success is by how willing students are to ask a teacher for help. If one applies that measurement to Brady, he’s certainly very successful. It’s not unusual to find a number of students in his Jabara Hall office, while others wait in the hallway. His willingness to help is perhaps the trait most mentioned when students complete their evaluations in his class. "One of the best teachers I ever had!" one student proclaimed. "His sincerity and compassion for his students drives them to excel."

Brady has been rewarded previously for his teaching: In 2000, he won the Academy for Effective Teaching Award.

Excellence in Teaching Award

Deborah Kennedy, instructor/ clinical educator and coordinator of student services, School of Nursing

Throughout Kennedy’s career, she has been committed to empowering students to become active professionals as nursing students and later as nurses, according to a student’s nomination for a Leader of Leaders Award she received in 1998 from the Kansas Association of Nursing Students. Kennedy, who joined the WSU faculty in 1994, is the faculty adviser for KANS, which won WSU’s Outstanding Student Organization award for two of the past three years.

The education of her students extends far beyond the classroom. Kennedy demonstrates the importance of community involvement, looking for ways nursing students can help. Some of these activities include volunteering at the American Red Cross, the American Diabetes Association Walk and collecting food for Kansas Foodbank Warehouse. She also worked alongside students cleaning up after the Hoisington tornado last spring, and shared duties during a day to honor local firefighters and police officers by making and delivering food to city and county stations.

"I believe that all of us who have the opportunity to teach college students have an obligation to participate with our students in community service in order to lay the foundation for them to become active community stewards," Kennedy says.

Some of Kennedy’s other honors include the President’s Distinguished Service Award at WSU and the Rodenberg Excellence in Teaching Award from the College of Health Professions.

When a student told Kennedy of her desire to name her daughter Kennedy in her honor, Kennedy considered that to be the greatest acknowledgement of what she teaches and believes – "that nursing faculty should model caring behavior."

Kennedy’s department chair Juanita Tate says, "Debbie’s passion for nursing is contagious; students love her enthusiasm and her emphasis on caring for and about others."

"Her expectations are high, but she has no problem helping any student attain any goal ever set," says one student. "She is so enthusiastic about nursing and creates a very positive learning environment. She is a teacher I will always remember."

Academy for Effective Teaching Award

Ken Pitetti, professor of physical therapy

Pitetti has been a teacher for more than 30 years, with the past 15 years spent at WSU. He taught biology, math, physiology and government, as well as serving as coach and assistant coach for a variety of sports at the high school level for 11 years. He then taught at the community college level, as a lecturer at a medical school, and as an exercise specialist at a rehabilitation center.

Before teaching, he served in Vietnam and was awarded six medals of honor including the Bronze Star with "V" Device, Combat Infantry Badge, and Purple Heart. He was medically retired in 1971, due to a combat injury that resulted in the amputation of his lower right leg.

With all his experiences, perhaps that’s why several students mentioned Pitetti’s great stories when commenting on him as a teacher.

"He has a vibrant personality, great stories, a great sense of humor, and a working knowledge of his field," says one student. "His stories and illustrations bring the physiology of the human body to life. I respect him very much."

For several years Pitetti has been researching and writing articles published in national and international journals on such topics as endurance training for people with disabilities and exercise management for people with chronic diseases and disabilities. Pitetti has developed an exercise curriculum for nearly 300 developmentally disabled children in area schools. The program is being studied to see whether it improves fitness in students.

His students describe him as "very knowledgeable," "up-to-date on the latest developments in his field," "funny," "caring" and "enthusiastic."

Pitetti has won several teaching awards including the Rodenberg Award for Excellence in Teaching in 1989 and an Excellence in Teaching Award from WSU in 1991. In 2000, KWCH Channel 12 named him Teacher of the Year in Wichita in its annual people’s choice contest called "Wichita’s Best."

He also was given the Jimmie Heuga Excellence Award in 1998, presented at the Annual American College of Sports Medicine meeting in recognition of service, leadership and dedication toward improving the lives of persons with disabilities.

Academy for Effective Teaching Award

Erach Talaty, chemistry professor

Certain teachers stand out for what they can teach in a classroom; others make an impression for who they are as a person. Talaty, who has taught at WSU since 1969, is a combination of both to his students. That’s why many stay in touch or write glowing letters. He anticipates students may have difficulty in understanding chemistry, often stereotyped as a tough subject, so he conveys how simple chemistry can be by relating it to everyday functions that people take for granted. Eating and digesting foods, taking medicines, wearing clothes – that’s all chemistry, Talaty explains. "Chemistry is all around us."

Another secret to his success is getting to know his students as individuals, finding out what they like and what they want to do. He spends countless hours with students outside of the classroom, in extensive help sessions and in conversation. "I don’t mind providing help if that will make the difference between success and exhilaration on the one hand and dejection and discouragement on the other," he says.

"Because he takes the time to resolve any problems you have, he has made me love chemistry and to do better in it," says one student.

"His knowledge and passion are unparalleled at WSU," says another student. "He is dynamic in the classroom and charming and personable in the office."

Outside the classroom, he spends many hours helping students prepare for medical school exams, and contributing to the chemistry department and his profession. He serves as a role model for younger chemistry faculty, according to his department chair. He wrote a successful grant application to acquire the department’s second NMR spectrometer, the equivalent of a MRI machine for chemicals, that gives students hands-on experience. His published articles have provided ideas now incorporated into undergraduate organic chemistry.

Over the years, Talaty’s efforts have not gone unrewarded – he’s the winner of the 1981 Excellence in Teaching Award, the 1999 Leadership in the Advancement of Teaching Award, and he was named the 1999 Kansas Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education.

Leadership in the Advancement of Teaching Award

Larry Blocher, professor of music

Blocher is associate director of the School of Music, associate director of bands and director of music education. He conducts WSU’s Concert Band and serves as associate conductor of WSU’s Symphonic Wind Ensemble.

He teaches undergraduate and graduate music education courses.

His current work focuses on teaching music through performance in band and has resulted in a five-volume book series titled "Teaching Music Through Performance in Band."

Blocher’s research on the impact of block scheduling as it relates to music has been the defining data on this topic. His presentations at numerous state conventions as well as two books on the subject of block scheduling for music education make him a recognized national expert in this field.

"Larry’s ability to inspire his own students as well as to reach out to his profession is indeed a model of teaching excellence," says colleague Tom Wine, associate professor of music education.

Since coming to WSU in 1995, Blocher has presented clinics, conducted and/or adjudicated in more than 20 states and seven countries. He currently serves on the editorial board for the flagship journal in his profession, the Music Educator’s Journal. Blocher is the current president of the Kansas Bandmasters Association.

Under his leadership, the summer workshop The Total Band Director is reaching graduate students and directors in the region.

Blocher is the recipient of the College of Fine Arts Excellence in Creative/Scholarly Activity Award for 2000.

Young Faculty Scholar Award

Steven Farmer, assistant professor, department of management

When colleagues describe Farmer, they use words like dedicated, highly motivated, determined, intellectually curious, well read. And because of his research, he hopes the word "creative" can be added.

Farmer’s main research focus in the last few years has been on creativity. And one of the reasons he started delving into the topic was because he had felt he was "uncreative," he says.

"A lot of people make an assumption that either you’re born creative or you’re not," Farmer says. But through his research he’s discovered that creativity in the work place is something that can be encouraged and fostered, even among those who might give themselves the same label Farmer had given himself. He’s found creativity is a combination of an environment that encourages it and doesn’t let politics get in its way, skills that can be learned, and inherent abilities. Recently Farmer broadened his research in this field by undertaking a cross-cultural look at creativity, studying employee creativity in Taiwan.

Farmer, who’s been at WSU since 1999, also researches volunteer management. Although unpaid, volunteers are driven, just as paid employees are, by wanting to do meaningful, useful work. Some want to develop and enhance skills, while others want to contribute already established skills. He’s currently working with the Connecticut Department of Veterans Affairs on its volunteer management.

In recent years, Farmer has published 10 refereed articles in top-flight management journals, including the Academy of Management Journal, and has made 16 presentations at professional scholarly meetings. The accolades he has received for his research and the number of citations of his work are indicative of the quality of his work. He’s won two best paper awards at conferences and received the Barton School’s Outstanding Researcher/Writer of the Year honor in his first year at WSU.

In the classroom, Farmer teaches "Making Effective Decisions," imparting the perils, pitfalls and positives of making decisions to students. He also teaches the MBA-level course "Business Decision Making and Analysis," which focuses on applied business research. Under Farmer’s guidance, students in that class "have responded with stronger research projects and a better appreciation for how research methods can enhance decision making," says Jim Wolff, associate dean for graduate studies and research in business.