Teachers who reach

From M, summer 2007

When University of Minnesota research leads to life-saving medical techniques, you might see the results in the life of a friend or family member. When U faculty apply its expertise to the broader community, such as water quality data to farmers or transportation studies data to regional planners, you might notice the ways your community improves. But how do you describe what happens when U teachers pass knowledge on to their students and expand their minds?

Though the learning and discovery process might be invisible to outside observers, U teachers--through their commitment to the next generation of scholars--are changing lives and advancing their fields. Their work is one of the benchmarks for excellence at the University, and every year the University of Minnesota Alumni Association honors these teachers for their contributions.

This year, 12 faculty members have been named recipients of the Distinguished Teaching Award, the University's highest award for excellence in teaching. Seven have received the Horace T. Morse-University of Minnesota Alumni Association Award to Outstanding Contributions to Undergraduate Education, and five the Award for Outstanding Contributions to Postbaccalaureate, Graduate, and Professional Education. The awards include a salary stipend, a monetary award to the recipient's department, and induction into the Academy of Distinguished Teachers.

The alumni association sponsors the Distinguished the Teaching Awards with the Senate Committee on Educational Policy and the Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost. Visit the Web site of the Academy of Distinguished Teachers to read profiles of the 2007 inductees.