USM Regents Honor Exceptional Faculty

 

Adelphi, MD—The University System of Maryland (USM) Board of Regents presented its 2004 Regents' Faculty Awards for Excellence at its meeting today (April 16, 2004). The regents recognized 11 faculty members from across the USM for their outstanding contributions in one of five categories: research/scholarship/creative activity; teaching; public service; collaboration; and mentoring.

"This is the highest honor bestowed by the regents to honor exemplary faculty achievement," said Clifford Kendall, chair of the USM board. Each honoree will receive $1,000.

Following is the list of honorees by category.

Research/Scholarship/Creative Activity

Thomas Cronin: University of Maryland, Baltimore County

Dr. Cronin's trailblazing multi-disciplinary research on vision in marine animals has been recognized worldwide, placing him at the forefront of his discipline. His peers testify that his research is remarkable for its contribution to our knowledge of visual systems in nature and for the wide-ranging implications of his discoveries for man-made visual information systems. This past year, Cronin was elected as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

John Guthrie: University of Maryland, College Park

Dr. Guthrie exemplifies the unique role that faculty in colleges of education play as both sources of teacher education and of the research on pedagogy and curricula that informs teaching practice. He holds a joint appointment as professor of human development and director of the Center for Education Research and Development. A nationally recognized expert on reading, Guthrie has made substantial contributions to the analysis of psychological processes children use in reading. He has been elected to the International Reading Association's Hall of Fame.

Teaching

Augustine DiGiovanna: Salisbury University

Dr. Giovanna has earned a solid reputation as a "teacher's teacher. In his 31 years at Salisbury University, he has taught more than 15 undergraduate and graduate courses in biology. His textbook, Human Aging: Biological Perspectives, received national acclaim and grew directly from his teaching experience. The 2002 recipient of the SU Alumni Faculty Appreciation Award and the 1997 Henson Advising Award, DiGiovanna is known for his devotion to advising his students on their academic records, their extra-curricular activities, study habits, and career goals.

Gloria Neubert: Towson University

Dr. Neubert is a nationally recognized expert in the field of reading instruction for secondary education teachers. She designed and directed the Maryland Writing Project, a site of the National Writing Project. In addition, she designed the Teacher-Research Institute to teach K-college student teachers how to study their own teaching and students' learning through case study research and other techniques. Neubert has received more than a dozen awards for outstanding teaching.

Public Service

Peter Leone: University of Maryland, College Park

Dr. Leone is an expert on school violence, school discipline, and juvenile justice institutions. He has served as a consultant to state legislators, the court system, and the Maryland State Department of Education on issues related to troubled youth. He directs the National Center on Education, Disability and Juvenile Justice, an advocacy group for incarcerated children with education-related disabilities. In addition, Leone formed a national group of experts and advocates for incarcerated, under-represented children and secured funding to support their efforts.

Jane Murphy: University of Baltimore

Dr. Murphy developed the University of Baltimore School of Law's Family Law Clinic, in which faculty supervise law students in their representation of indigent clients. She has devoted much of her time to building the school's clinical program, which operates seven clinics serving a wide range of low-income clients, court systems, and neighborhoods facing family, consumer, housing, and other legal issues. Murphy also accepted pro bono cases and participated as a trainer for statewide poverty law organizations.

Collaboration

Liddell Louise Madden: Salisbury University

L. Jay Bishop: University of Maryland Eastern Shore

Dr. Madden is associate professor of social work and dual degree coordinator in social work and sociology at SU. Dr. Bishop is the dual degree coordinator in sociology and social work at UMES. The dual-degree program enables UMES sociology majors to begin a B.A. in sociology at UMES and in their junior year, begin work for the B.A. in social work at SU. The program has grown substantially and now enrolls 100 majors, testimony to fine advising and an innovative curriculum design.

Mentoring

S. James Gates: University of Maryland, College Park

Dr. Gates is the first African American to hold a chaired professorship in physics at a major research university and is the John S. Toll Professor of Physics. He has been an extraordinary mentor to many aspiring scientists, especially African-American scientists. At the College Park campus, he began hosting the Students' Summer Theoretical Physics Research Session, which enables students from across the nation to work in the laboratories of University of Maryland researchers in string theory, quantum gravity, and other areas. Gates also has created several innovative and electronic national programs that offer career guidance to young African-American physicists.

Nancy Miller: University of Maryland, Baltimore County

Dr. Miller joined the UMBC Department of Public Policy in 1998 and has undertaken substantial advising responsibilities. Her accomplishments include: chairing committees of 15 doctoral students, serving as an adviser and reader for 23 students' analytic papers, and mentoring undergraduate students in the summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship Program. In the last three years, Miller has worked with students to gain external funding for 10 successful research grants, ranging from $6,500 to $13,000.

The USM Board of Regents established its Faculty Awards in 1995 to publicly recognize distinguished performance by educators and researchers within the university system.

Contact: Anne Moultrie


Phone: 301/445-2722
E-mail: amoultrie@usmd.edu