The Jefferson Scholars Foundation recently created the Hartfield-Jefferson Teaching Prize to acknowledge exceptional teaching in the University’s Engineering School.
In determining the recipient of prize, which is limited to undergraduate professors, the foundation looks for commitment to curriculum issues as well as excellence in teaching, Jefferson Scholars Foundation President James Wright said.
“The interest is in recognizing professors who teach Engineering School students, who have demonstrated a great commitment to the field [and] an interest in students and teaching,” Wright said. “There’s also a desire to recognize people who have established innovative methodologies.”
Wright said he expects to award the first prizes in the 2009-10 academic year. Though the foundation anticipates honoring five professors, the number of recipients may vary from year to year, Wright said. Engineering School Dean James Aylor said because of the Engineering School’s distinguished faculty, it may be difficult to determine which professors deserve the accolade. He stressed the difficulty in narrowing the candidates from the school’s broad talent pool.
“Usually in cases like this, it’s pretty hard to find those one or two people who stand out above the others,” Aylor said.
An anonymous donor has pledged to fund the new award, Wright said, and the foundation expects that all payments will be in order by this spring. At that point, the individual award totals will be determined. Wright also said he foresees that the selection process will begin during the summer.
“We’ll invite nominations, and then there’s a committee that will do an assessment of nominations that are received,” Wright said. “My expectation is, like all of the selections that the Jefferson Scholars makes, the criteria and standards will be high,”
Though Aylor said he has not met with the donor, he said he believes the donor chose the Engineering School as the recipient of his or her gift for personal reasons.
“Usually what happens when you get an award like this is that the donor had some faculty member when he or she was here who really inspired him or her to be successful,” Aylor said. “They want to give back and they look at what faculty made a difference.”
In light of the recent economic downturn, Wright also said the foundation believes the Hartfield-Jefferson Teaching Prize will reward professors who might not otherwise have been recognized for their work.
“Anything that can encourage and reward exceptional teaching is a good thing for the University community,” Wright said. “With the funding problems the state is having, the ability of the University to give raises is constrained, so anything we can do to promote and reward our best teachers is a noble cause.”
Aylor noted that the award draws attention to the Engineering School’s mission.
“Sometimes the core activity of the school is ignored, and people don’t get acknowledged for the excellent job they do in teaching,” Aylor said. “I think this is a really outstanding way for a donor to reward us for what I think is what we’re really here to do.”
The Jefferson Scholars Foundation, founded in 1980, seeks to promote intellectualism and achievement within the University by providing scholarships and academic opportunities to exceptional students, according to the Foundation’s Web site.
Read More
U.Va. loses over $60 million in federal research cuts
By Bertie Azqueta | 21 hours agoThe impacted grants include three from the NIH, seven from the NEH, one from the United States Agency for International Development and four from the State Department.
Department of Education reverses course, awards Federal Executive Institute to U.Va.
By Ford McCracken | 3 days agoThe ED had previously awarded the institute to Charlottesville City Schools.
Students reflect on the life and legacy of Pope Francis
By Bertie Azqueta | 4 days agoAt the University, students shared a range of perspectives on his legacy of reform, inclusivity and his impact on the global Catholic community.
