UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences has recognized seven faculty members for outstanding teaching in 2023.
Named recipients of the college's Community of Teaching Excellence Award were John Coupland, professor of food science; Francisco Dini-Andreote, assistant professor of phytobiomes; Justine Lindemann, assistant professor of community development and resilience; Michael Mashtare, assistant professor of agricultural and biological engineering; Michael Mohney, associate teaching professor of plant science; and Elsa Sanchez, professor of horticultural systems management.
In addition, Kirsten Lloyd, assistant teaching professor of plant science, received the Paul R. and Joan M. Shellenberger Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, which recognizes full-time instructors with teaching appointments (not on tenure track).
— John Coupland joined the food science faculty in 1998. Among his primary teaching responsibilities are a general-education course titled Food Facts and Fads, the lab-intensive upper-level course Food Chemistry and the theory-based graduate course Food Physical Chemistry.
Robert Roberts, head of the Department of Food Science, noted that Coupland “demonstrates a deep commitment to the art and practice of teaching and, most importantly, his students. His performance and effort are driven by his desire for students to make connections between concepts, practice and understanding. Because of his approach to teaching, students can go beyond reciting facts and trivia and travel a path to better understanding the ‘why.’”
— Francisco Dini-Andreote has been a member of the plant science faculty since 2019. He teaches an undergraduate-level class in agroecology and a self-developed graduate-level class in community ecology.
Erin Connolly, head of the Department of Plant Science, noted that evaluations by both students and peers have been outstanding each year. “He is an exceptionally skilled, innovative and dedicated educator,” she said. “Since arriving at Penn State, he has embraced his teaching role through formal classroom instruction of both undergraduate and graduate students and has been working with several graduate students as their mentor in his research program. Clearly, he is dedicated to training the next generation of plant scientists via multiple avenues.”
— Since Justine Lindemann started at Penn State in 2019, she has taught undergraduate and graduate courses covering various aspects of community development, economic development, social and environmental responsibility, and local knowledge and democracy. David Abler, interim head of the Department of Agricultural Economics, Sociology, and Education, said she is a dynamic educator who is deeply committed to student-centered learning.
“Dr. Lindemann also works to develop courses that privilege marginalized voices and alternative knowledge systems, thus providing a more welcoming learning environment for students from diverse backgrounds,” he said. “She has also made significant contributions to enhancing our department’s culture of teaching excellence and catalyzing the professional development and teaching effectiveness of other faculty.”
— A member of the Penn State faculty since 2020, Michael Mashtare has taught courses in soil and water resource management, land waste disposal, environmental analysis, and community engagement in environmental science.
Suat Irmak, head of the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, praised his efforts to provide a “heathy, safe and open environment for our students” and to bring “current research and practical application into the classroom to show immediacy and relevancy. He is an incredible advisor, a great mentor with love and passion for teaching next generation scientists, engineers, researchers and educators. He challenges students to think critically and develop problem solving skills and is there to provide a thorough explanation of a difficult problem or concept.”
— Michael Mohney joined the plant science faculty in 2008. Since then, he has taught in the landscape contracting curriculum, covering topics such as computer and CAD applications in landscape contracting, hand and digital landscape graphics, and residential landscaping fundamentals.
Erin Connolly, head of the Plant Science Department, said Mohney creates “engaging and challenging assignments utilizing emerging technologies to advance student learning. He frequently assists in other courses within the program, offering instruction on how to improve design solutions and graphic representation of ideas. He also volunteers as an adviser to our Horticulture Club and as a coach for students participating in national competitive events. It would be difficult for me to identify a more dedicated, competent and effective instructor.”
— Elsa Sánchez, who arrived at Penn State in 2002, teaches subjects such as vegetable crops, horticulture systematics, hydroponics and aquaponics, and gardening for fun and profit. She exhibits innovative skills, dedication and passion for her teaching, according to Connolly.
“She is universally beloved by her students and tremendously respected by her peers,” she said. “Dr. Sanchez provides outstanding leadership in service at the national, university and department levels. She has also been proactive in her efforts to innovate and update our curriculum. In recognition of her effectiveness in teaching, she recently received the North America Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture Educator Award and the Gamma Sigma Delta Outstanding Teaching Award.”
— Kirsten Lloyd has been a faculty member at Penn State since 2019, teaching horticultural science, plants in the human context and plant propagation. “Kirsty's effectiveness in teaching is evidenced by near capacity enrollment in almost all her courses, excellent student rating scores, extremely positive evaluative comments from the faculty peer reviewer, and overwhelmingly positive submitted student letters of support,” Connolly said.
She pointed out that Lloyd trains three undergraduate teaching assistants in her courses each semester and mentors one graduate teaching assistant per year. “She has illustrated incredible innovation and motivation in her teaching and is a gifted ‘natural’ teacher,” she added.