Robert R. and Lila L. Snell Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching Award
This award, established by the Snells, is given to a full-time faculty member in the college at the associate professor rank or higher with at least five years of teaching experience in the college. Awardees receive a $2,000 cash prize.
The nomination process is coordinated by the department head or department awards committee. Nomination packets include the following items of support for the nominee:
- Letter of nomination (can include comments/input from peers and students).
- Current curriculum vitae.
- Summary of outstanding instruction in undergraduate courses that address the following:
- All undergraduate courses taught within the last five years (include course number, title, credit hours/contact hours and number of students enrolled).
- Include recent (last two years) TEVAL summaries the above undergraduate classes. Include course number and title, term, number of students and TEVAL summary scores.
- One-page (maximum) statement that addresses:
- Nominee's teaching philosophy.
- List of other undergraduate educational contributions made by the nominee within the last five years, such as advising student organizations, undergraduate research and/or other creative inquiry activity, major course/instructional enhancements, educational grants/contracts, workshops, professional society engagement and other related scholarship. Do not include general student curricular advising.
Current recipient
Lisa R. Wilken
This year’s recipient is Lisa R. Wilken, associate professor in the Carl and Melinda Helwig Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering.
Wilken has served as the chair of the BAE Course and Curriculum Committee and the BAE Assessment Coordinator since 2018. In this role, she completely revamped the assessment process for ABET and KBOR learning outcomes. She instituted new rubrics on achievement of student learning outcomes that are focused on specific assignments that address those outcomes.
Wilken was recently named the director of the newly opened Biomanufacturing Laboratory and Training Facility in Seaton Hall. Through her efforts, $1.5 million worth of equipment has been selected and procured that will be dedicated to training students and industry personnel in the latest technologies and techniques related to biomanufacturing.