Four of our Freshman Research Initiative (FRI) Research Educators were recipients of teaching awards this fall semester.
Dr. Diana Zamora-Olivares (Supramolecular Sensors) is the first recipient of the CNS 2023 Stanley J. Roux, Jr. Excellence in Experiential Teaching Award, which recognizes outstanding commitment to providing students with exceptional experiential learning opportunities through research and hands-on engagement. As the Associate Director for the UT Wine Initiative, Zamora-Olivares also facilitates a research collaboration on wine and viticulture between the University of Texas, other Texas universities, wine distributors, and the local Texas wine industry.
Dr. Kasia Dinkeloo (Bioprospecting) received the Center for Teaching & Learning Experiential Learning Award, which honors a dedication to improving experiential learning at UT Austin, and is entirely student nominated. Dinkeloo's students learn wet lab skills and concepts, and apply their training to pursue novel research questions around topics such as plant response to heavy metals or the search for plastic-degrading microbes/enzymes. Among those nominated for this award include: Dr. Wenrui Chai (Computational Materials), Dr. Soo-Hyun Yang (Biobricks), Dr. Josh Beckham (Virtual Cures), Dr. Diana Zamora-Olivares (Supra Sensors) and Dr. Lauren DePue (FRI Faculty Director).
Dr. Greg Clark and Dr. Pedro Metola were recognized with 2023 College of Natural Sciences (CNS) Teaching Excellence Awards, celebrating academia's outstanding faculty committed to undergraduate teaching. As a long-standing RE for Discovering Signals in FRI, Clark has a passion for igniting student interest in research, providing hands-on access to plant biology experiments. Dr. Metola's advanced undergraduate research team, Practical Sensors in the Accelerated Research Initiative (ARI), explores inventive methodologies to generate adaptable molecular analysis sensors. Metola's students describe his research experience as "one of the best courses at UT" and a professor that "truly inspired [my] future career goals".
