UNM Press Release

Biographical Statements for Teaching Awards Ceremony 2004
Teaching Assistants of the Year

Presented by Dean Teresita Aguilar

Dan Breecker

Dan is a Masters student in the Earth and Planetary Science Department where he has been studying with Zach Sharp for the past two years. He graduated from Amherst College in 2001 with a degree in geology and subsequently spent a year traveling the United States and exploring its diversity. New Mexico was one of Dan's destinations. Now it's his home. The blend of ethnicities, ideas, cultures and landscapes in New Mexico make it the most interesting and enjoyable place he has experienced. He thanks the people he has met here for helping to define this experience.

The notion of a “sense of place” figures prominently in Dan's ideology and the relationship between physical space and human interaction is among his favorite subjects to contemplate. When not pondering the fundamentals of the human psyche, Dan spends his time out-of-doors hiking, mountain biking, and climbing. He sometimes shovels xeriscape gravel in partial fulfillment of a childhood dream he once expressed to his parents, “when I grow up I want to be a ditch digger.” Not all dreams come to fruition. So rather than looking so far forward, Dan now continually reminds himself to enjoy the present. He is satisfied with his current status as a lousy guitar player and has few plans for improvement. But he has higher expectations of his students. He is concerned about their understanding while also attempting to understand their concerns. He truly enjoys teaching and is a very proud recipient of this award.

Lori Ebert

Lori C. Ebert - is from Denver, Colorado. She earned a Master's degree in Audiology at Colorado State University and came to New Mexico in 1993 to provide hearing health services on seven Native American reservations across New Mexico and Colorado. She spent six years as an audiologist and the last two as Program Director. She left this career in Aug. 1999 to go to school full time to earn a PhD in Health Education.

It was possible to do this because of a teaching assistantship and this spring makes it five full years she has taught at UNM. The main courses taught include Personal Health Management and Human Sexuality. She has also taught 8 other courses.

Lori has just completed all requirements for the PhD and will graduate May 15th. She hopes to find a Health Education or teaching job in the surrounding states to be near family (mostly so she can get married and start my own!)

She was recently hired to write a Teacher's Manual for the textbook used in Human Sexuality and hopes to continue writing, speaking, and consulting in Health Education. Her next major feats will include having her own Wellness Center and being on Oprah! Lori says that the most memorable part of this teaching experience has been each and every student who inspired her to be a better teacher every day!

Michele Ferm

Michele Ferm will graduate this summer from the University of New Mexico with her master of arts in German Studies. Her thesis is entitled "Representations of Black in the Jazz Memorabilia of the Weimar Republic."

Michele has taught introductory German at the University of New Mexico since the fall of 2002. Last summer Michele participated in the German Journalism conference held in Germany. Earlier this spring she presented at the California State University - Stanislaus "Empire and Imperial Culture Conference."

Michele admits that on her first day of teaching German 101 in the fall of 2002, she had nightmares the entire week before classes and was tempted on the first day to quietly leave the classroom before students realized that she was there in the role of instructor. She still remembers the first moments of panic before starting class and the jolt of excited energy as her students began to learn German. Michele, though, has found in teaching a passion that she did not know was present. Teaching is an enhancement of her life and she hopes that students and colleagues have been touched by the experience as much as she has.

Andrey Glubokov

Andrey graduated from Moscow State University. He has been a teaching Assistant here at UNM since Spring 2000 when he was accepted into the PhD program in Pure Mathematics. He teaches various Algebra and Calculus courses and also mentions teaching Dancing! As an international student, Andrey participated in the ITARC course currently offered through CASTL in 2000 and found it be to very useful. He believes that effective teaching skills can be developed and continues to engage in activities to further develop his skills.

Andrey has developed a powerful teaching philosophy through his experience at UNM. He finds that making students work hard often results in a love/hate relationship – the students hate to work hard but love how much they learn. He believes that students are most successful when they feel valued as individuals, supported, and motivated to learn – creating that learning environment is why he teaches.

Lillian Gorman

Lillian Gorman is a native Nuevomexicana born and raised in Albuquerque and will be receiving her M.A. in Hispanic Southwest Studies in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese this spring.

Lillian has worked with the Sabine Ulibarrí Spanish as a Heritage Language Program as an Instructor for two years. In addition to teaching and developing curriculum for 4 different levels of Heritage Language classes and a Conversation course, Lillian has enjoyed developing new ways of incorporating experiential learning into her classes. Lillian has provided field trip opportunities to Tomé Hill, the Hispanic Cultural Center, and local restaurants. Lillian created a Compañero de Conversación program in which Heritage Language students were paired with Latin American students learning English. She also created a language-learning pilot program in Nicaragua for two weeks in which 8 students lived and attended class in Nicaragua.

Lillian hopes to continue to pursue her interests in Heritage Language Learning and Chicano Literature in the future and to further her commitment to Hispanic Undergraduate student success. Lillian considers it a great honor as a Chicana and a Nuevomexicana to have worked in the Spanish as a Heritage Language Program and would like to thank her students and her family for their constant and unconditional support, especially her grandparents and parents.

David Weiss

David Weiss is a 2nd-year Ph.D. student in Communication & Journalism. His research focuses on the language of public discourse, bringing aspects of cognitive linguistics, cultural studies, and the philosophy of language to bear to the understanding of the power of the media.

Originally from Connecticut, David attended Cornell University, where he received his bachelor's degree in psychology in 1982. Leaving academia behind for a while -- 17 years, to be exact -- David worked in the advertising industry in New York City, ultimately reaching the level of senior vice president at a major international ad agency before deciding to have a midlife crisis. In 1999, David left New York and the advertising business, setting out for a new life in the West. He lived in Montana for a year, working as a freelance journalist, marketing consultant, and ski bum, and then decided to pursue his long-suppressed academic dreams. He moved to Eugene where, in 2002, he received his M.A. in literary nonfiction from the University of Oregon's School of Journalism and Communication.

Since arriving at UNM, David has taught a number of courses in the C&J department including Persuasive Communication, Introduction to Advertising, Media Theory, and his personal favorite, Language, Thought, and Behavior. Next year he will be researching and writing his doctoral dissertation and will be teaching Introduction to Mass Communication and, hopefully, Media Criticism.

Outstanding Teachers of the Year

Outstanding Adjunct Teacher/Lecturer of the Year

Presented by Provost Foster

Outstanding Teachers of the Year

Elizabeth (Liz) Keefe

Liz Keefe's road to teaching has been circuitous. Growing up in England in the 1970s, all girls were encouraged to go into teaching or nursing - both of which she vehemently resisted. Liz received a BA in Sociology from the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne and an MA in Anthropology from the University of Nebraska. She had a variety of jobs but, no matter what the job, she somehow ended up teaching people. Liz stopped resisting and admitted that she loved teaching and received her M. A. and Ph. D. in Special Education from the University of New Mexico.

She taught in the Albuquerque Public Schools for five years and says she was fortunate to be a part of a Professional Development School where she was inspired by professors at UNM to become involved in action research. This experience is what led her into the Ph. D. program and serves as the foundation of a lifelong commitment to connecting teaching practice and research at every level.

Liz has been teaching for the College of Education since 1994. She is coordinator of the Dual License Undergraduate Program, which is an innovative interdisciplinary program that prepares teachers to work with students with and without disabilities in inclusive educational settings. She also teaches at the graduate level in special education and is proud to be a member of the faculty who developed a graduate program to prepare teachers and educational leaders to work with students who have mental retardation and severe disabilities in inclusive educational environments.

For Liz, teaching is a journey that she is honored to be able to share with colleagues and students. She always hoped that she could be a part of inspiring and preparing new generations of educators. This Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award is shared with her colleagues at UNM and in the public schools who have helped her become a better teacher every year through their collaboration and support. Liz says that the award is also shared with every student she has ever taught because they have all taught her in return.

Leonard Kravitz

Len Kravitz received his Ph.D. in Health, Physical Education and Recreation from the University of New Mexico (UNM) in 1994. From 1996-99 he served as the Program Director of Exercise Science and Graduate Coordinator of Wellness at The University of Mississippi. Since 1999 he has served as Coordinator of Exercise Science, in the Dept. of Physical Performance and Development, at UNM.

Len is recognized and highly respected nationally and internationally for his contributions to the fitness and health industry. He has published 15 refereed journal articles and recently completed the 7th edition of his popular textbook, Anybody's Guide to Total Fitness . Since arriving at UNM, he has co-authored 27 peer-reviewed articles with Exercise Science students. In 1987, Len was the first person to be awarded the “Fitness Instructor of the Year” award from IDEA ( the health and fitness organization of the United States). He was recently given the prestigious honor of being selected Senior Exercise Physiologist for IDEA. His advisory responsibilities include disseminating evidenced-based research information on health and exercise to fitness professionals and exercise enthusiasts worldwide. He has delivered over 200 international lectures on fitness, health and exercise science at international conferences in Portugal, Spain, Taiwan, Brazil, Germany, Italy, Australia, Canada, Japan, England, Norway and the United States.

He believes that you are your own best teacher when you carefully examine what you and your students do in class and develop teaching approaches that incorporate how students learn most effectively. Len keeps weekly teaching logs with specific reflections and comments describing and evaluating strategies and teaching techniques that he uses. Engaging in his own learning intersects the learning done by his students. Len incorporates his knowledge of learning modalities – visual/nonverbal, tactile/kinesthetic, and auditory/verbal – into his teaching to create a learning environment that meets the diverse needs of students. His teaching philosophy is straightforward: “In all of my teaching approaches and strategies, I strive to guide students and professionals so they will love to learn, and continue learning.”

Outstanding Adjunct Teachers/Lecturers of the Year

Stephen S. Alley

Steve has taught in the Department of Psychology, in one capacity or another, since 1991. From his early graduate student days teaching introductory lab classes to his years as a part-time lecturer, Steve has taught a total of twelve different undergraduate courses for the department. As a current full-time lecturer, Steve feels that he has the best job on campus.

Steve reports that he has experienced every size, shape and flavor of classroom experience that UNM has to offer. He has taught classes with small enrollments (15 students) and with large enrollments (350 students). He has taught Saturday, evening and daytime courses. He has taught main campus students, branch campus students through Extended University and students at Southwest Indian Polytechnic Institute through Continuing Education. He has taught freshmen, seniors, majors and non-majors and suspects that he may have taught a number of non-students who just ducked into the classroom to catch their breath or escape the heat.

Steve is working toward a paperless, but quite industrious, classroom. He incorporates digital technology into his teaching –PowerPoint, Ereserves, and extensive use of email. He seeks to instill an atmosphere of appreciative inquiry and to act as if there is indeed much to appreciate – the materials, each other, the process and the opportunity itself.

Steve credits Mike Dougher, Mark McDaniel, Gordon Hodge, and his many wonderful students for having made his teaching possible.

John David Benavidez

John Benavidez -- a native New Mexican, born and raised in the Albuquerque area -- is a lecturer in the Department of Marketing, Information, and Decision Sciences at The Anderson Schools of Management at The University of New Mexico. He joined the ASM faculty in 1997 as an adjunct instructor and later received a full-time lecturer appointment in 2003. He teaches courses in marketing management and promotion management and team-teaches a course in the Freshman Learning Communities program. He is also an instructor in the marketing certificate program at ASM's Management Development Center.

John has over 10 years of marketing management experience in the consumer food products and advertising industries. In 1998, he founded ABQ Direct Marketing, Inc., a leading provider of direct mail marketing services in New Mexico. In 2003, he was elected president of the New Mexico Chapter of the American Marketing Association.

Teaching a broad range of courses at the Anderson Schools, John enjoys the challenge of choosing the methodologies that work best for each course; however, in all is his teaching, John uses the discussion method to convey a greater part of the course material. John facilitates the process of student understanding by asking questions and providing few answers. In smaller courses, John uses case studies and small group work to facilitate student learning. He sends students out into the marketplace to conduct research in the Promotion Management courses.

John's teaching philosophy is captured in a quote from William McKeachie – “Professors known as outstanding lecturers do two things: they use a simple plan and many examples.”

Mary Anne Santos Newhall

Mary Anne Santos Newhall was born in California¹s San Joaquin Valley. Her father was a farmer and her mother was from the Portuguese island of Madeira. She was raised by her grandmother, who couldn't read, write or speak English, but who came to this country with the hope of a better life. This award is a testimony to that dream.

Returning to college as a non-traditional student after performing as a dancer and raising a son, Mary Anne received her bachelor¹s degree summa cum laude and a master¹s with distinction in dance history and criticism from the University of New Mexico.

She has been guest teacher at the University of California, Irvine, University of Washington, New York State School for the Arts and Brown University. She has an ongoing role as guest artist, teacher and research director for the American Dance Legacy Institute at Brown.

Mary Anne has been teaching dance technique classes for over 30 years. For the past seven years she has taught at UNM. To her great delight she has added lecture courses in dance history and criticism to her teaching repertory. From her rich experience, Mary Anne shares – “Teaching is an exchange, a spark that jumps from teacher to student and back again like a flame fueled by curiosity and passion. Teaching is successful when students are compelled by their own interest to go farther into the material – to find that thing that grabs them and sweeps them along in a quest to find out more. Real learning is discovery and the great surprise is that the teacher becomes a learner, too. Teaching always keeps me learning.”

May Anne continues to research and publish about dance and cultural history and will be entering the doctoral program in history at UNM in fall 2004.

Presidential Teaching Fellow

Presented by President Caldera

Our next award is the 2004 – 2006 Presidential Teaching Fellowship. The primary goal of the Presidential Teaching Fellows program is to promote excellent in teaching by establishing a core group of faculty who are given the highest recognition for their effective teaching and who carry a special responsibility toward ensuring teaching excellence by sharing their expertise with the University community.

Specifically, the program seeks:

To recognize, celebrate and reward UNM faculty members for sustained and continuous teaching excellence;

To create a sustaining group of skills faculty who are advocates of and consultants for teaching excellence;

To enhance teaching through collaboration between Teaching Fellows and faculty;

To demonstrate the importance of accomplishments in teaching commensurate with the productivity and accomplishments in research; and

To have a core of Teaching Fellows who will advise the President on means to promote and ensure distinguished teaching in all of UNM's educational endeavors.

The title “Presidential Teaching Fellow” remains with Fellows for their duration of their service at UNM. During the two years of active duty, Fellows engage in a project designed to meet selected program goals.

CHRISTOPHER C. MEAD

Christopher Mead holds a joint appointment as Professor of Architectural History in the School of Architecture and Planning, and in the College of Fine Arts at the University of New Mexico, where he has taught since 1980. He is a specialist in the history of modern architecture in the United States and Europe since 1750, in theories of urbanism and the history of modern cities, and in pragmatic methods of architectural practice. He received his B.A. summa cum laude (1975) from the University of California at Riverside, and his M.A. (1978) and Ph.D. (1986) from the University of Pennsylvania.

The author of books, articles, and essays on modern French and American architecture and urbanism, his publications include an edited collection of essays on the architect Robert Venturi, monographs on Charles Garnier's Paris Opera and the houses of Bart Prince, and a forthcoming study of Victor Baltard and nineteenth-century Paris. Past President of the Society of Architectural Historians, he has also served on the Cultural Properties Review Committee of the State of New Mexico and as Interim Dean of the College of Fine Arts at UNM. He is currently serving the Provost of UNM as a Special Assistant for Planning.

Though occasionally tempted to move elsewhere, Christopher has stayed at UNM 24 years because he enjoys the challenges and the opportunities that come with teaching at a large public university: if the students have sometimes been left unprepared by their earlier education, they are open to new ideas and will match a teacher's dedication with their own hard work. He has taken interdisciplinary approach to his work believing that different disciplines, professional as well as academic, are best served and made stronger when they are tested at their margins through exposure to new possibilities of practice and of thinking. The real value of interdisciplinary teaching is making the separate disciplines better, because it makes them at once more self-aware and flexible.

Christopher notes that while his beliefs as a teacher have remained remarkably constant over the last 24 years, but that his teaching methods have just as constantly changed. Every course offered is in a state of continual evolution and development – he transforms the content of each course over a period of 5 years and then completely rethinks, restructures and rewrites that course in year six – and another five-year cycle of revision begins. How information is delivered is as important as the information itself when it comes to engaging and therefore teaching students. Information is delivered, questions are encouraged and students are given the opportunity to work through the material themselves.

The point of each course is to get students to think clearly about the materials presented, and in the end, the purpose as a teacher is that once students grasp the discipline of articulating ideas about their world, then they have learned to think for themselves.