The Alumni Association honored 21 NC State professors last week for their outstanding work in the classroom, in the laboratory and in the field. We talked (via email) with some of the recipients about their work and the keys to being a successful professor.
Today we’re visiting with Jay Levine, a professor of epidemiology and public health in the College of Veterinary Medicine. He is also an associate curator at the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences. Levine is one of three professors being recognized with Outstanding Extension and Outreach Awards.
What is the key to being a successful teacher? Enjoying teaching, a bit of theatre, and focusing on the key elements of what you feel students may need to know, rather than on just presenting facts.
What gives you the greatest satisfaction as a professor? Seeing personal growth in students I’ve worked with. Watching them take on new challenges and watching them move beyond the things I’ve introduced them to. Perhaps the things I’ve enjoyed the most is taking time from the rigors of running a laboratory and teaching to work with young future scientists; helping instill a sense of wonder about the beauty of the natural world.
The Alumni Association will honor 21 NC State professors on May 3 for their outstanding work in the classroom, in the laboratory and in the field. We talked (via email) with some of the recipients about their work and the keys to being a successful professor.
Today we’re visiting with Don Thrall, a professor in the Department of Molecular Biomedical Science in the College of Veterinary Medicine. Thrall is one of three professors being recognized with Outstanding Extension and Outreach Awards.
What is the key to being a successful teacher? There are certainly others who are more adept at teaching than I, but I think patience and flexibility are important attributes. Many times helping someone become proficient requires reviewing the same point or concept on multiple occasions. Using different scenarios or examples to emphasize the same point has also been an effective method for me.
What gives you the greatest satisfaction as a professor? No question, the success of those you have helped instruct. It isn’t one’s personal advances but the advances, and the maturation of thinking and analytical skills, in your students that gives extreme satisfaction.
The Alumni Association is honoring 21 NC State professors for their excellent work in the classroom, the laboratory and the field. The professors will be recognized at a reception at the Dorothy and Roy Park Alumni Center on May 3.
The winners of the 2012 Faculty Awards are:
Alumni Association Distinguished Undergraduate Professors
D. Barry Croom | Department of Agricultural and Extension Education | College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Jeffrey A. Joines | Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science | College of Textiles
John R. Meyer | Department of Entomology | College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Craig M. Newmark | Department of Economics | College of Management
Maria Oliver-Hoyo | Department of Chemistry | College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences
John K. Townsend | Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering | College of Engineering
Alumni Association Distinguished Graduate Professors
Y. Richard Kim | Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering | College of Engineering
Hiller A. Spires | Department of Curriculum, Instruction and Counselor Education | College of Education
Alumni Association Outstanding Research Awards
Edward Bealmear Breitschwerdt | Department of Clinical Sciences | College of Veterinary Medicine
Jon-Paul Maria| Department of Material Science Engineering | College of Engineering
Ann Helen Ross| Department of Sociology and Anthropology | College Humanities and Social Sciences
Alumni Association Outstanding Extension and Outreach Awards
Jay F. Levine | Department of Population Health and Pathobiology | College of Veterinary Medicine
Donald E. Thrall | Department of Molecular Biomedical Science| College of Veterinary Medicine
Grady L. Miller |Department of Crop Science | College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Alumni Association Outstanding Teacher Awards
Jennifer L. Campbell | Department of Biology | College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Martha L. Crowley | Department of Sociology and Anthropology | College of Humanities and Social Sciences
Jessica T. DeCuir-Gunby | Department of Curriculum, Instruction and Counselor Education | College of Education
Michael D. Dickey | Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering | College of Engineering
Scott M. Ferguson | Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering | College of Engineering
David W.W. Jones | Department of Agricultural and Extension Education | College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Shevaun Neupert | Department of Psychology | College of Humanities and Social Sciences
The Alumni Association recognized some of NC State’s greatest stars this weekend, honoring 18 alumni and friends of the university for their professional and personal accomplishments and their continuing support of NC State, the Alumni Association and the Wolfpack Club.
“Their light, ignited by their NC State education and fueled by their own successes, reflects upon their alma mater, enhancing NC State’s reputation around the world,” Chancellor Randy Woodson said during the “Evening of Stars” at Prestonwood Country Club in Cary. “They unequivocally add value to an NC State degree.
“These are alumni who have made impacts around the globe; through television broadcasts and comprehensive websites, on Main Street and Wall Street; through rhyme and reason; in factories, laboratories, classrooms and boardrooms.”
The honorees at the 8th Annual NC State Evening of Stars were:
COLLEGE DISTINGUISHED AWARD RECIPIENTS
S. Elizabeth George ‘81 MS, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences: As director of the Cooperative Threat Reduction Directorate for the U.S. Department of Defense, George is recognized as one of the nation’s leading authorities on chemical and biological warfare.
H. Connor Kennett Jr. ‘54, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences: Kennett was the longtime director of the poultry division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture before he retired in 1988. He was the first North Carolinian inducted into the National Poultry Hall of Fame.
David W. Evans ‘84, College of Design: Evans is an award-winning creative director, photographer and filmmaker who has worked for clients such as the National Geographic Society, Discovery Channel, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the United Nations Foundation.
Carl E. Harris ‘98 EDD, College of Education: A former superintendent of Durham (N.C.) Public Schools, Harris was named in 2010 as deputy assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Education. He also served as superintendent of the Franklin County (N.C.) Public School System.
Marshall D. Brain ‘89 MS, College of Engineering: Brain founded HowStuffWorks.com, an award-winning website that offers easy-to-understand explanations of how the world around us functions. Discovery Communications purchased the site for $250 million in 2007.
William H. “Bill” Dean ‘88, College of Engineering: Dean is president and CEO of M.C. Dean Inc., a company founded in 1949 by his grandfather. The company is the nation’s premier electrical design-build and systems integration firm, with 3,300 employees and clients that include Fortune I000 corporations, universities, high-tech companies and government agencies.
Robert R. Womack ‘59, College of Engineering: After working as a partner at McKinsey & Company, a global management consulting firm, Womack went on to serve as chairman, chief executive officer or president of four New York Stock Exchange companies.
Nora H. Shepard ‘05 MFA, College of Humanities and Social Sciences: Shepard is an award-winning poet who teaches creative writing and poetry at NC State. A longtime advocate of the arts, Shepard was the founding president of Arts Together, Raleigh’s only nonprofit multi-arts school.
Jon W. Bartley ‘69, Poole College of Management: Bartley is a professor of accounting at NC State who served as associate dean of the college from the time it was founded in 1993 until 1998, when he became dean. He served as dean until 2004, when he returned to the faculty.
Ed Leigh McMillan II ‘62, College of Natural Resources: McMillan is the managing trustee of the D.W. McMillan Trust and the D.W. McMillan Foundation, managing 40,000 acres of timber in Alabama and Florida, as well as the mineral rights and drilling sites for newly discovered oil reserves associated with the property.
David B. Montgomery, ‘68, ‘81 PhD, College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences: Montgomery worked for 30 years as a plasma physicist at Becton, Dickinson and Company (now known as BD), developing new technology that resulted in 15 U.S. and five European patents.
F. Dale Hayes ‘78, College of Textiles: Hayes is vice president of global public relations for UPS, and was responsible for developing the company’s award-winning, memorable slogan about what “brown can do for you,” and redesigned its iconic brand mark to give UPS one of the most recognizable brands in the world.
Dr. David E. Anderson ‘88 BS, ‘90 DVM, College of Veterinary Medicine: Anderson is a professor at the College of Veterinary Medicine at Kansas State University, where he is head of agriculture practices in the Department of Clinical Sciences. He is the founding director of the International Camelid Institute at The Ohio State University and the International Academy of Farm Animal Surgeons.
WOLFPACK CLUB AWARD
E.J. Poindexter ‘58, Ronnie Shavlick Award: Poindexter worked for more than 40 years for Barnhill Contracting Co., where he eventually became the company’s first vice president. Poindexter has been devoted to NC State athletics for more than 55 years, never taking a vacation that didn’t revolve around an NC State sporting event.
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION AWARDS
Dennis G. Howard ‘67, Meritorious Service Award: Howard served for 14 years on the Alumni Association Board of Directors, serving on every board committee and providing leadership as the board’s president during a critical year of transition for the Alumni Association and its Caldwell Fellows program.
David S. Jolley ‘70 and Celia G. Jolley ‘83 MS, Meritorious Service Award: David, vice president of commercial lending at C&F Bank in Williamsburg, Va., was a founding member of the NC State Board of Visitors and has served on the NC State University Foundation and its endowment board. David and Celia, a retired educator, are members of the C.W. Dabney Lifetime Giving Society and the R.S. Pullen Society.
Ada B. Dalla Pozza, Award of Merit: As a NC State extension agent, faculty member, mentor and volunteer for more than 70 years, Ms. Ada (as she is known) provided leadership to improve the quality of life for families and helped create leadership institutes for rural women, many of whom became elected officials.
Daniel C. Gunter III ‘00, Outstanding Young Alumnus: Gunter, an associate attorney with DLA Piper, serves on the Alumni Association’s Young Alumni Council and is a member of the association’s board of directors as a representative of the Council on Athletics.
More than 60 people, including a few Army generals and colonels, gathered to talk with NC State Chancellor Randy Woodson at an alumni reception last night at the Airborne & Special Operations Museum in Fayetteville. The chancellor took questions from the crowd and talked about the upcoming football season.
“Tom O’Brien is an outstanding football coach,” Woodson said. “One thing I appreciate about Tom is that he is a Marine. When you are a chancellor you know all the bad stuff, and I sleep very well at night with Tom O’Brien as a coach because he takes care of those players.”
Alumni Association President Judi Grainger ‘72 and Peter Stewart ‘78, a Fayetteville-based Alumni Association volunteer, spoke about the importance of membership and involvement in the Alumni Association to attendees.
We know Wolfpack fans are animal lovers. And that love extends beyond packs of wolves, right?
If so, you need to make plans this weekend to visit the new Randall B. Terry Jr. Companion Animal Veterinary Medical Center. It’s a 110,000 square-foot addition to NC State’s veterinary medical complex, and it’s full of all sorts of state-of-the-art medical equipment.
The new facility more than doubles the size of NC State’s small animal veterinary teaching hospital. It will give the college twice the number of surgery suites and exam rooms, more teaching space and larger patient visitation areas.
The new facility is being formally dedicated today, but will be open for public tours from 1-4 p.m. on Sunday. Check it out!
NC State Chancellor Randy Woodson and Benny Suggs, executive director of the Alumni Association, present the 2011 Faculty Awards during a ceremony at the Park Alumni Center.
The Alumni Association honored 18 NC State professors this evening for their exemplary work as teachers, researchers and scholars.
NC State Chancellor Randy Woodson, Alumni Association President Judi Grainger, and Benny Suggs, executive director of the Alumni Association, presented the 2011 Faculty Awards during a ceremony and reception at the Park Alumni Center on Centennial Campus.
“These are faculty who encourage and inspire with enthusiasm and dedication,” Grainger said. “They ignite the curiosity of students, feed their thirst for knowledge and teach the value of cooperation and collaboration
“These are faculty who empower students to reach beyond rote learning, to think independently and expansively, and believe in themselves.”
Woodson described the faculty as “intellectual catalysts” and “the cornerstone of this university.”
Chad Jordan, undergraduate programs coordinator for the Department of Plant Biology, was one of four recipients of the Alumni Association Outstanding Teaching Award. He said the recognition had special meaning because students were involved in the selection process.
“That’s the highest honor a teacher can receive, when your students recognize you,” Jordan said. “That’s thrilling.”
Alexander Deiters, an associate professor of bio-organic chemistry, was one of three professors recognized with Alumni Association Outstanding Research Awards.
“It’s nice that NC State recognizes young professors and their research before they become established,” Deiters said. “That’s a nice touch. You don’t see that very often.”
The winners of the 2011 Faculty Awards are:
Alumni Association Distinguished Undergraduate Professors
Medwick Byrd | Department of Forest Biomaterials | College of Natural Resources
Cynthia L. Istook | Department of Textiles and Apparel, Technology and Management | College of Textiles
Bong-Il Jin | Department of Graphic Design and Industrial Design | College of Design
Russell E. King | E.P. Fitts Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering | College of Engineering
James A. Knopp | Department of Molecular and Structural Biochemistry | College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Janet F. Spears | Department of Crop Science | College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Alumni Association Distinguished Graduate Professors
Hugh A. Devine | Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management | Department of Natural Resources
John J. Seater | Department of Economics | Poole College of Management
Alumni Association Outstanding Research Awards
Alexander Deiters | Department of Chemistry | College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences
Tony K. Stewart | Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies | College of Humanities and Social Sciences
Orlin D. Velev | Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | College of Engineering
Alumni Association Outstanding Extension and Outreach Awards
John C. Begeny | Department of Psychology | College of Humanities and Social Sciences
David Hinks | Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science | College of Textiles
Lukasz M. Mazur | Business Development | Industrial Extension Service
Alumni Association Outstanding Teacher Awards
Kofi Boone | Department of Landscape Architecture | College of Design
Christopher J. Crosbie | Department of English | College of Humanities and Social Sciences
Chad V. Jordan | Department of Plant Biology | College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Dudley M. Marchi | Department of Foreign Languages and Literature | College of Humanities and Social Sciences
These are photos from last Friday night’s annual Evening of Stars gala. Eighteen NC State alumni and friends were honored by the Alumni Association, individual NC State colleges and the Wolfpack Club.
The awardees have excelled in their careers, made a difference in their communities and given back to their alma mater. They were recognized for career accomplishments and contributions to NC State during the event at the Prestonwood Country Club in Cary.
You can see a list of winners here. For behind-the-scenes photos of the event, visit our Flickr gallery.
What is the key to being a successful teacher? Enjoying teaching, a bit of theatre, and focusing on the key elements of what you feel students may need to know, rather than on just presenting facts.
What is the key to being a successful teacher? There are certainly others who are more adept at teaching than I, but I think patience and flexibility are important attributes. Many times helping someone become proficient requires reviewing the same point or concept on multiple occasions. Using different scenarios or examples to emphasize the same point has also been an effective method for me.
The Alumni Association recognized some of NC State’s greatest stars this weekend, honoring 18 alumni and friends of the university for their professional and personal accomplishments and their continuing support of NC State, the Alumni Association and the Wolfpack Club.
COLLEGE DISTINGUISHED AWARD RECIPIENTS
More than 60 people, including a few Army generals and colonels, gathered to talk with NC State Chancellor Randy Woodson at an alumni reception last night at the 
We know Wolfpack fans are animal lovers. And that love extends beyond packs of wolves, right?
Researchers at NC State 
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