FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Indiana University will honor 10 faculty members and a graduate student for excellence in teaching, research and service to the university Friday, April 8, at the 2016 Celebration of Distinguished Teaching dinner. The dinner, which will be held at the Indiana Memorial Union, is a part of IU's Founders Day, an annual spring celebration that marks the university's founding in 1820.
IU President Michael A. McRobbie will present the awards during the dinner to honorees hailing from the IU Bloomington, IU Northwest, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis and IU South Bend campuses.
"At this celebration we honor the full spectrum of educators, from associate instructor to distinguished professor, as we recognize superior scholarship and creative activity, teaching excellence and exemplary service," McRobbie said. "These are some of IU's finest faculty members, whose efforts every day in the classroom, laboratory and studio transform the lives of students, preparing them for successful careers after graduation."
New distinguished professors
As previously announced in February, five IU researchers and scholars were promoted to distinguished professor, the most prestigious academic appointment IU can bestow upon its faculty.
The five include IU Bloomington professors Katy Börner, a visualization researcher from the School of Informatics and Computing; Roger P. Hangarter, a molecular plant biologist from the Department of Biology in the College of Arts and Sciences; Stanley Ritchie, a professor of violin and early music in the Jacobs School of Music; and Eliot R. Smith, a researcher of cognition and emotions from the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences in the College of Arts and Sciences. Dr. Bruce Molitoris, a researcher of renal disease in the IU School of Medicine's Department of Medicine in Indianapolis, also has achieved the rank of distinguished professor.
The rank of distinguished professor was created by the IU Board of Trustees in 1967. The title is conferred by the university president with approval of the board. A complete list of IU distinguished professors, along with titled professors and additional information, is available online.
Teaching award winners
Four professors will receive the President's Award for Teaching, which was established in 1974 to recognize outstanding teaching, research or service. As a distinguished teaching award, it serves to honor the most exceptional faculty, their devotion to students, and their strong commitment to the university's fundamental missions of excellence in education and research.
Receiving the President’s Award for Teaching will be IU South Bend faculty members Mark W. Bradford, an adjunct lecturer in management, and Gary M. Kern, an associate professor and chair of decision sciences. Also receiving the award are Tim Hallett, an associate professor of sociology at IU Bloomington, and Diane M. Larson, a senior lecturer in computer information systems at IU Northwest.
Rachel La Touche, a doctoral candidate in sociology at IU Bloomington, will receive the Lieber Memorial Teaching Associate Award for outstanding teaching. It is presented to university graduate students who combine their programs of advanced study with instructional employment in their schools and departments.
Service award winner
The John W. Ryan Award for Distinguished Contributions to International Programs and Studies will be given to Patricia McDougall-Covin, the William L. Haeberle Professor of Entrepreneurship and director of the Institute for International Business in the IU Kelley School of Business. Initiated in 1991, this award honors faculty members and librarians from all campuses for exceptional contributions to the university's international programs and studies.