2020-21 Faculty Awards - Excellence in Teaching
Phong Nguyen, Assistant Professor
Computer Systems Engineering
“Not only was Phong responsible for leading me to OIT from PCC, but he has been instrumental in my success here with his help figuring out courses, getting overrides for summer classes to do the junior project, and I know I am not the only person he has helped so much in similar fashions. He uses great instructional techniques and his enthusiasm for the material and love for his family shine through in every lesson..I'm absolutely positive that as good as he is on Zoom, in class instruction would be other-worldly. “
“Phong has all the qualities of a great professor. He is intelligent, positive, passionate, and engaging. But beyond him being great within the classroom, he is more dedicated to his student’s than any professor I have ever met. The only reason the Embedded Systems program exists on the Portland Metro campus is because of Phong. He is constantly teaching Junior Project, Senior Project, and numerous other classes. I really don’t understand how he balances it all and does it with a smile on his face.”
"Almost always responds to emails within a few hours and teaches his classes in such a way that the class is always excited or engaged in whatever he is doing. The material being taught is also delivered in an effective way despite the relaxed class atmosphere."
Don McDonnell, Professor,
Medical Imaging Technology
“Don is always super excited to see his students each time he arrives go class. His courses are interesting and engaging because as a student you can tell he is excited, which makes all the students excited. He takes material that could be boring, and makes it fun and interesting to learn by bringing in new and fun ways to engage with material. He is available after classes to help his students, but also available to either meet in his office or through email and is always willing to help out or just talk about how everything is going. He is an exceptional professor and I have loved all classes with him!”
“Don is the most enthusiastic professor I have personally ever had. He will go out of his way to help everyone succeed, and I could not think of a better professor for this nomination. Don is a fantastic resource for the Radiology program and is available at any time his students are in need of help.”
The Excellence in Teaching Award Selection Committee:
- Mason Wichmann, ASOIT President Klamath Falls
- Icek Warnecke, ASOIT President Portland-Metro
- Brian Moravec, ETM Prior Award Recipient
- Tanya McVay, HAS Prior Award Recipient -
- Don Johnson, ˿Ƶ Tech Foundation Board Representative
- Kaiulani Evans-Bautista, Admissions Office
- Sharon Beaudry, CCT Commission Member
2018-19 Faculty Award - Excellence in Teaching
Brian Moravec, Associate Dean, ETM
Professor, ETM
“Brian is always engaging students, challenging their understanding. He is passionate and nurturing toward his clubs. When he is on campus he encourages students to catch him in the hall and ask questions, or flag him down in his office. If he can he will stop what he is doing to work with you. If he can't he will track you down as soon as he can to follow up.”
“Easily one of the best professors I’ve had. He is always available and willing to answer questions and his answers are helpful. He’s funny however still manages to cover all the content he needs to. He’s also the faculty advisor for Baja and Formula clubs and does a good job keeping them on track. He also supports other clubs that enhance student learning. This includes being present on Saturdays to allow students access to the shops when timelines were needing to be met.”
“Tanya McVay takes the time to focus on each one of her students and their needs. I know this personally because she is my A&P teacher and my academic advisor, she has gone out of her way to help me personally pass my classes and succeed to my best ability. She is an amazing person and I think she really deserves to be honored.”
“ Dr. McVay is very dedicated to her students and pushes them to achieve their maximum potential. She believes that they can do great things even when they don’t think that of themselves. She works hard to continually adapt her teaching style to help whatever class she is teaching at the time..”
The Excellence in Teaching Award Selection Committee:
- Brittney Ayles, Student Representative, Klamath Falls
- Nashmy Luna, Student Representative, Portland-Metro
- Stefan Valenzuela, ASOIT President, Portland-Metro
- Sean Sloan, ETM Prior Award Recipient
- Darlene Swigart, HAS Prior Award Recipient
- Kaiulani Evans-Bautista, Associate Director, Admissions
- Don Johnson, ˿Ƶ Tech Foundation Board Representative
- Barb Meng, Executive Assistant to the Office Academic Excellence
2017-18 Faculty Award - Excellence in Teaching
Irina Demeshko, Associate Professor
“Irina is an organized, dedicated professor with a love for her profession, her students and education. She excels at instructing students on theory, gives worked examples of problems and gives well-structured and relevant lectures. She helps students in class and out of class understand the material and creates interesting labs that require out of the box thinking and problem solving skills. Also, Irina is the adviser for the Society of Women Engineers.”
“Irina is always cordial and her door is always open to her students and faculty. She always has a positive attitude.”
“Irina is an exceptional faculty and person, always willing to go the extra mile for her students.”
Andria Fultz, Assistant Professor
“Professor Fultz teaches Speech Fundamentals and Small Group Communication - useful skills for daily work and home life but always applied in some sort of context. Most people don't give speeches or work in groups for the sake of doing so - Professor Fultz knows this and gives that context to the class. Speech is given the context of teaching or instructing the class. Group work is given the context of building a device or process that will actually be used by students. Her approach is engineering applied to communications.”
“Outside of her classes, Professor Fultz is dedicated to the same principles of applied learning. She advises the Portland-Metro Inventor's Club - a student club allowing for both engineering and non-engineering students to gain hands-on experience in crafting inventions and presenting them to the public.”
The Excellence in Teaching Award Selection Committee:
- Faith Lee, ASOIT President Klamath Falls
- Peggy Hawkins, ASOIT President Portland-Metro
- Cindy Reed, CCT Student Representative
- Matthew Sleep, ETM Prior Award Recipient
- Dan Peterson, CCT Representative
- Sally Jones, ˿Ƶ Tech Foundation Board Representative
- Seth Anthony, Interim Director of the Office of Academic Excellence
- Nellie Stewart, Executive Assistant to the Office Academic Excellence
2016-17 Faculty Award - Excellence in Teaching
Matthew Sleep, Assistant Professor
“Professor Sleep is masterful in balancing an intellectual atmosphere in the classroom, using a vast repertoire of experience, humor, and knowledge to share with his students.”
“Dr. Sleep is the real MVP (Most Valuable Professor) at ˿Ƶ Tech.”
“I think what really makes Dr. Sleep an excellent is his ability as a teacher. He conveys technical information effectively while making class fun and engaging. He is extremely dedicated.”
“Dr. Sleep is extremely proactive in his teaching, constantly making small changes to his courses in response to student feedback. He is also constantly looking for new electives to teach, giving the students in the civil engineering program additional skills upon graduation.”
Burt Clark, Professor
“Professor Burt Clark is one of the five factors that led me to discover the true joys of what ˿Ƶ Tech has to offer to its students and the community at large.”
“Dr. Burt Clark exemplifies the word "passion." Simply by showing his own passion for his work in microbiology, he drives myself and many other students to not only learn the material but to also enjoy it.”
“Not only does he have extreme passion for students, microbiology, medicine, and teaching, but he has lived a life full of hardships that serve as a guide to help his students live their lives more satisfied, fulfilled, and better.”
“He was more than an instructor for me, he was a mentor and a friend. Dr. Clark played an integral role in my acceptance to graduate school. “
The Excellence in Teaching Award Selection Committee:
- Faith Lee, ASOIT President Klamath Falls
- Peggy Hawkins, ASOIT President Portland-Metro
- Cindy Reed, CCT Student Representative
- Matthew Sleep, ETM Prior Award Recipient
- Dan Peterson, CCT Representative
- Sally Jones, ˿Ƶ Tech Foundation Board Representative
- Seth Anthony, Interim Director of the Office of Academic Excellence
- Nellie Stewart, Executive Assistant to the Office Academic Excellence
AWARD CRITERIA
Recipients of the ˿Ƶ Tech Foundation Excellence in Teaching Award should demonstrate one or more of the following:
- Outstanding teaching performance as evidenced by engaging instruction, positive interaction with, and availability to, students
- Exemplary commitment to students through academic advising, or extra-curricular involvement and advising, both formal and informal
- Leadership in initiatives supporting student success
Recommendations about award recipients will be made by Selection Committee based on the extent to which the initial nomination and letters of support demonstrate excellence as described by the award criteria. Additional consideration will be given to those with multiple recommendations and to recommendations written by students. Selection Committee recommendations will be submitted to the ˿Ƶ Tech Foundation President by May 15th.
The Excellence in Teaching Award Selection Committee:
- Faith Lee, ASOIT President Klamath Falls
- Peggy Hawkins, ASOIT President Portland-Metro
- Cindy Reed, CCT Student Representative
- Matthew Sleep, ETM Prior Award Recipient
- Dan Peterson, CCT Representative
- Sally Jones, ˿Ƶ Tech Foundation Board Representative
- Seth Anthony, Interim Director of the Office of Academic Excellence
- Nellie Stewart, Executive Assistant to the Office Academic Excellence