Purdue News

Class gifts aim to enrich teaching at Purdue

The voluntary, year-long program pairs senior professors, recognized for their strong teaching backgrounds, with up to four assistant or associate professors. The faculty will work in teams to share classroom success stories and teaching techniques. The program also will focus on such matters as adjusting teaching modes to class size, student readiness, learning styles and cultural diversity.

Faculty members chosen for the program receive professional development stipends.

The Teaching for Tomorrow Awards are given through the office of Robert L. Ringel, executive vice president for academic affairs, and are to be funded by a $350,000 endowment that is being established by the Purdue Classes of 1944 and 1945 through their 50th reunion gift campaign.

George Van Scoyoc, associate executive vice president for academic affairs, helped to create and coordinate the awards. Linda Young, director of class gift programs, coordinated the 50th reunion gift campaign.

"We hope the program provides creative teaching tools for all of the faculty members involved and ultimately benefits students in the classroom," Van Scoyoc said.

The Purdue alumni funding the award share the same goal. Charles Boonstra, president of the Class of 1944 and vice president of the Purdue Alumni Association, chairs the endowment campaign for his class. His wife, Esther, chairs the campaign on behalf of the Class of 1945, of which she is president.

"We wanted to do something to benefit the students educationally," Boonstra said. "Monuments and gifts of campus structures are nice and are important to the university, but our purpose is to improve the already excellent learning experience for Purdue students."

Senior faculty award recipients for 1997 are:

• Muriel Harris, professor of English
  
• James J. Vorst, professor of agronomy

Assistant and associate faculty recipients are:

• Rebecca W. Doerge, assistant professor of statistics
  
• Francis J. Doyle III, assistant professor of chemical engineering
  
• Julie A. Everett, assistant professor of clinical pharmacy
  
• Alan L. Grant, associate professor of animal science
  
• Sidney M. Moon, associate professor of educational psychology
  
• Bruce H. Morimoto, assistant professor of chemistry
  
• Jason D. Papastavrou, associate professor of industrial engineering
  
• Nancy J. Peterson, assistant professor of English

Nominations for the 1998 Teaching for Tomorrow Award will be solicited in September.

CONTACT: Van Scoyoc (765) 494-0608.

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; e-mail, purduenews@purdue.edu

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