Recognizing WSU’s best, brightest
Some of WSU’s best teachers, researchers, artists and students will be recognized during Honors Convocation at 10 a.m. Saturday, March 10, in the Hughes Metropolitan Complex.
More than 650 students in various honor societies and holding at least a 3.75 grade point average have been invited to be recognized as well.
Ten faculty members will be honored with awards.
Mohammad Dadashzadeh, winner of last year’s Excellence in Teaching Award and the 1997 Leadership in the Advancement of Teaching Award, will be the special guest speaker. An associate professor of management information systems, he has been on the WSU faculty since 1989.
Academy for Effective Teaching Awards
Paul Cromwell, professor of criminal justice and director, School of Community Affairs
 Students give kudos to criminal justice professor Paul Cromwell for mixing textbooks and real experience, like his study of burglars that led to the book "Breaking and Entering." |
Cromwell says he is reminded about the importance of teaching as he sips his morning coffee each day – a class 10 years ago gave him the coffee cup he uses, with the inscription, "Those who can, teach. Those who cannot, go into some less significant line of work."
Perhaps his greatest strength is to relate the concepts in criminology to the "real world" of criminal justice because of his 20 years’ experience as a drug and alcohol program director, a probation officer, various roles in juvenile justice and as a member of the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles. In the past decade, he conducted interviews and studies with burglars and shoplifters, which resulted in the books "Breaking and Entering: An Ethnographic Analysis of Burglary" and "In Their Own Words – Criminals on Crime."
"I feel that students appreciate having a teacher who has done it, as well as one who can teach it," he says of his experience. "While I studiously avoid ‘war stories’ in the classroom, I think it’s important to be able to show students how the academic aspect melds with the practical."
If he can’t supply the practical side, he brings in criminal justice professionals to provide the information.
Students confirm Cromwell is on the right track. "Dr. Cromwell has extensive knowledge of the criminal justice system," says one. Another says, "His burglar study is one of his most insightful topics." "His combination of real experience, videos, books and excellent guest speakers makes the class extremely interesting," notes one student.
Hamid Lankarani, associate professor, mechanical engineering
"I
am a firm believer that one of the main goals of teaching should be to
build a lifelong relationship with the students," says Lankarani,
a Bombardier/ Learjet Fellow. "I am in constant touch with every
single one of the more than 50 graduate students who has finished a degree
under my supervision."
That kind of relationship building has resulted in an annual gathering of Lankarani’s former graduate students who work in Detroit’s automotive industry.
Thanks to Lankarani’s hard work, WSU is recognized as one of the leading institutions in the area of crashworthiness, and WSU graduates in this program are highly sought after due to the quality of teaching and exemplary training.
In the classroom, Lankarani exposes students to his research and he makes his computational facilities available to mechanical engineering students and faculty.
Lankarani has high expectations for his students. They acknowledge that they enjoy the work as they get extensive exposure to many real-life practical problems and industrial projects.
If student success is evidence of effective teaching, Lankarani is well deserving of the teaching award.
Many of his students have achieved impressive careers in the automotive and aircraft industry, and academic settings.
Ravi Pendse, associate professor, electrical and computer engineering
 Ravi Pendse, an award-winning teacher at WSU, right, shows Cisco routers to Goddard High School guest student Kenneth Scarpelli, who will be a WSU student in computer science and electrical engineering this fall. |
It hasn’t taken long for Pendse to make a mark on his students since joining the faculty in 1994.
Pendse routinely teaches large sections of undergraduate and graduate students in computer networking and computer architecture. It is said that after one class meeting he knows every student in a class of 70 or more by name.
Here are just a few student testimonials about Pendse’s teaching.
"Makes class interesting and fun, but challenging."
"He doesn’t just do teaching, but indeed he molds the students’ careers."
"If it wasn’t for Ravi, I would not be attending WSU or living in Kansas. He promotes the highest level of academic achievement. Also, he promotes high ethical standards. He is one of the most hard-working professors that I have ever had."
Pendse says, "A teacher should be a friend and a mentor to a student. I feel that a student will work harder for a class if they perceive the teacher to be friendly."
His unofficial resumé could include experience as a "career counselor." Pendse has graduated more than 100 graduate students in the last five years, and most of them are employed in prestigious companies.
Kathy Perez, associate professor, department of sociology
When
Perez joined the WSU faculty in 1983, she found teaching was a much more
difficult endeavor than she had anticipated. But in the years since, she’s
strived to continuously improve, modeling her style after teachers important
to her. Among those mentors, one had demonstrated being well prepared,
organized and personable, and enthusiastic about a subject matter; another
showed that humor can be an effective teaching tool. "They really
made you want to be a good student," she says.
Comments from Perez’s students indicate she’s succeeding at using those tools. "Dr. Perez conducts all of her classes in (a) dynamic and enthusiastic style," one student says. Others say she’s well prepared and personable.
Perez has also worked diligently to combine teaching, research and service – the cornerstones of WSU’s mission. She seeks out community research projects for her sociology students. Such projects have included designing, administrating and analyzing surveys for the Catholic Diocese when it wanted to start a remarriage preparation program and helping evaluate Via Christi St. Joseph’s Teen Heartline project in its early stages.
"This allows the students to apply in a concrete way all they’re learning," Perez says. Once the projects are completed, students receive letters from Perez and the sponsoring agency to include in their portfolios.
In 1998, after a six-year stint as department chair, Perez drew upon her area of expertise as an urban sociologist to fill a need for new sociology classes. She designed and implemented the new courses Contemporary Social Problems and Urban Sociology, and prepared a new telecourse, Health and Lifestyle.
Board of Trustees Excellence in Teaching Awards
Barbara Gonzalez, assistant professor, department of dental hygiene
 Barbara Gonzalez, an assistant professor, works with students in WSU's dental hygiene clinic. She's receiving her third teaching award in eight years. |
For Gonzalez, students "constantly renew my enthusiasm for my profession and reinforce my need to be a lifelong learner. As a teacher, I must be open to the many ways people learn and do my best to help, yet encourage them to take responsibility to be self-motivated learners as well," she says.
Gonzalez won the Academy for Effective Teaching Award in 1997 and received the College of Health Professions’ teaching award in 1993.
One student says of her teaching, "She is very dedicated. She is caring and willing to come in early or stay late to help her students. She has high standards and expects a lot from her students. She goes out of her way to be a mentor and an awesome one she is."
A practicing dental hygienist herself for several years, Gonzales says dental hygiene hasn’t changed dramatically since she was a student. "There are some improvements in technology such as digital radiography and computerized intraoral cameras, but we still use our ‘hand scalers’ in essentially the same way."
Another thing that hasn’t changed is the faculty and student relationship. "When I was a student, I felt at ease with my faculty, some of whom I get to teach with now! They were very approachable and helpful, yet demanded quality from us. I like to think that has not changed for our students now, and that we are seen as willing to help, yet pushing them to achieve for themselves."
For more than a decade Gonzales has taught such classes as histology, anatomy and embryology. As a clinical and classroom teacher, she works with preclinical students, teaching the basics of patient treatment, as well as first- and second-year students.
Glenna Van Metre, instructor, department of sociology
"To
sit in her class and not expand your views and knowledge means you must
be dead," remarks one student about Van Metre.
Perhaps what makes Van Metre’s classes particularly interesting to students is that they are about institutions and societal problems people deal with or hear about practically every day. She teaches Marriage and Family, Juvenile Delinquency, Criminology, and Deviant Behavior. She has taught at WSU since 1989.
To encourage students to think about issues in those classes, she frequently uses in-class exercises. In the Juvenile Delinquency class, for example, she often tells the students that their ideas may be as good as those from professionals, as society continues to struggle with juvenile crime.
"What really brought this class home to me was the insights she shared," one student says. "It was this and her ability to cause me to reflect on my beliefs and thoughts and to sit back and look at society with new insights and knowledge reaped from her class. I feel I have a better understanding and compassion to those around me."
Van Metre’s longtime volunteerism with the Kansas Children’s Service League has also helped bring "real-world" focus into those issues. For much of the 13 years she’s volunteered with the nonprofit group, she’s done phone counseling with parents and youth.
Van Metre also goes the extra mile when it comes to students. When one student had to be absent from class, Van Metre called the student at home later that day to discuss the day’s assignments. It’s for actions like that, and for her outstanding teaching in the classroom, that one student proclaimed: "She rocks!"
Young Faculty Scholar Award
Jeffrey Bryant, associate professor, School of Accountancy
A
fellow colleague calls Bryant "an asset" to WSU. It seems fitting
that a scholar in accountancy is described as such.
To specialize in taxation, particularly federal income taxation, as Bryant does, means one is constantly trying to keep abreast of the many changes made annually to the codes for personal income tax, corporations, nonprofits and other entities. This poses challenges in both teaching and research, yet Bryant has demonstrated outstanding performances in both areas, as well as service to the university.
Since 1995, Bryant has published 26 refereed articles in top journals, and his work has been cited by others in their research at least six times. For one of those articles published last year, he won the Deloitte & Touche Silver Award for Excellence, which is a national award for research.
In 1999, he won the W. Frank Barton School of Business’ Outstanding Researcher/Writer of the Year, and last year he was selected as a Barton School Fellow, awarded primarily because of his outstanding research record.
His articles have covered such topics as making college affordable and higher education credits to spouse liability to avoiding deferred tax on excess distributions.
When he’s not writing research articles, he reviews them as a member of the board of advisers and a contributing editor of the Journal of Taxation of Investments.
In the classroom, Bryant consistently scores high in student evaluations. Outside the classroom, he continues to develop relationships as adviser to the national accounting fraternity, Beta Alpha Psi. He has taught at WSU since 1993.
Leadership in the Advancement of Teaching Award
Ben Rogers, associate professor, department of philosophy
When
Rogers was recruited to WSU, he was charged with developing a program
in the philosophy of science and over the past 35 years he has developed
and taught numerous courses in his area of expertise, often using innovative
teaching methods to do so.
In 1966 he joined with distinguished physics professor John Breazeale to teach an interdisciplinary course, Physics and Inquiry, which was a popular course during the five years it was taught.
"There is no doubt that the success of this course re-ignited a college-wide interest in, and acceptance of, high quality interdisciplinary courses," says David Soles, professor and chair of philosophy.
Another of Rogers’ successful courses, Science and the Modern World, which combines history, sociology and philosophy, was the model for the issues and perspectives component of WSU’s general education program.
Decades ago, he began developing computer-aided instructional modules, and throughout that time he has helped other faculty create similar modules.
Rogers has also been successful in developing more traditional teaching materials. He is the co-author of "Logic: An Introduction to its Elements," a textbook used by several hundred WSU students each year, and "Notes on Logic," a handbook on logical reasoning used in WSU’s introductory philosophy courses.
Through his committee work, Rogers has also furthered WSU’s mission. He served on the committee that helped establish the master of arts in liberal studies program and was among the faculty who helped create a university-wide system for student evaluation of teaching effectiveness. He also was instrumental in developing WSU’s current honors program, which actually got its start through conversations Rogers and other faculty had in the late 1960s about a more rigorous curriculum for WSU’s brightest students.
While his accomplishments in developing new courses and programs are many, Rogers’ willingness to mentor and nurture young faculty is perhaps his greatest asset, says Soles, who credits Rogers with helping him be a better teacher.
Excellence in Creative Activity Award
J.C. Combs, professor of percussion and music literature, School of Music
 J.C. Combs, professor of percussion and music literature, juggles creativity as easily as diverse rhythms. When he got his first drum set as a youngster, he used "to sit and stare at it and dream of becoming someone." Now he’s someone who can add winning WSU’s Excellence in Creative Activity Award to his extensive list of accomplishments. |
Combs juggles creativity as easily as diverse rhythms. For example, he teaches, performs and composes. His creative thinking extends to promoting his works and those of his students and former students. He recently constructed the prototype for a new line of sticks for Zildjian. He says he has other inventions in the works, and that’s part of the fun of what he does – creating.
From early childhood in Clearmount, Mo., Combs was passionate about music, particularly the drums. His parents finally were able to buy him an old, white drum set with a blue light under the calfskin head. "It was a remarkable moment for me," Combs recalls. "I used to sit and stare at it and dream of becoming someone.
"I began playing clubs when I was 14 – too young to be in a smoky club, but my father, bless his heart, sat for four-hour gigs falling asleep over one bottle of beer he’d been nursing."
Combs’ ability to collaborate with filmmakers, dancers, composers, set designers and even wrestlers has brought about award-winning video projects. The video "War Games for Professional Wrestlers and Extended Percussion" was selected for the Cannes Video Festival and won a Chicago Film Festival silver prize. "Masters of Percussion," featuring percussionists worldwide, was released on PBS, aired in 37 states and will be in the Smithsonian’s permanent video archives.
His sons have inspired some of his writing. In fact, for his last CD "Alone at Last," he wrote three character pieces based on their personalities.
The creative process often reveals a part of the artist, and humor is often an impetus for Combs’ creativity.
"In my case that’s who I am. I don’t think I could write something without at some point giving it a touch of humor."
Other things that influence Combs’ creativity are listening to the works of other musicians and traveling to hear music of other cultures and inviting those artists to WSU so his students and the community can benefit.
"I’m just as passionate about creating music as I ever was," Combs says. "In a setting like this, with students around everyday, it’s impossible to grow old. They come in with fire in their eyes hungry for information, ideas and direction."
Excellence in Research Award
Victor Isakov, professor, department of mathematics and statistics
For
centuries, everyday life has yielded interesting problems for mathematicians.
For the 17th century scientist Sir Isaac Newton it meant looking for ways
to build better ships. For WSU researcher Isakov, it means finding ways
to build better airplanes, among other things, in the 21st century.
Isakov specializes in studying inverse problems for partial differential equations. While the general public may not understand the intricacies of inverse problems, it more than likely can understand its applications. The study of aging aircraft and the development of X-rays and magnetic resonance images in medicine are just two examples that have relied on this type of mathematical problem-solving.
Among his research projects, Isakov is studying acoustic levels in aircraft cabins with fellow WSU mathematician Tom DeLillo. He’s also using the theory to study option pricing, which again is important to society because of its economic reliance on money markets. Isakov who has spent his entire academic career studying inverse problems, divides his research evenly between the applied and theoretical.
Isakov has produced more than 80 research papers, many of which have been published in the most prestigious mathematics journals. His two books on inverse problems are used by a number of university mathematics programs. He also has been successful in securing several National Science Foundation grants in extremely intense competitions during the past decade.
In addition to his research, Isakov works closely with a number of doctoral students. He has produced five graduates from the program and is currently working with two doctoral candidates.
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Award
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