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Read more about Engaged Scholar Henry Young on Page 5.
Read more about Inventor of the Year Puliyur MohanKumar on Page 4. Vol. 50, No. 33
HONORS&AWARDS April 17, 2023
news.uga.edu/columns
Meigs Teaching Professors
Four faculty members were named Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professors for 2022-23. The professorship is the university’s highest recognition for instruction at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Meigs Professors receive a permanent salary increase of $6,000 and a one-year discretionary fund of $1,000.
Peter Frey
Andrew Davis Tucker
Dorothy Kozlowski
Chamberlain Smith
Tessa Andrews
Sonia Hernandez
Maria Navarro
Kim Skobba
Associate Professor Department of Genetics Franklin College of Arts and Sciences
Professor Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources College of Veterinary Medicine
Professor Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
Associate Professor Department of Financial Planning, Housing and Consumer Economics College of Family and Consumer Sciences
Tessa Andrews relies on four key principles to help her students develop a deep, conceptual understanding of the material and hone their abilities as scientific thinkers, communicators and learners. “I strive to enact these four principles in each lesson,” she said. “Doing so requires continuously improving my teaching by gathering feedback from students and leveraging research about teaching and learning.”
Sonia Hernandez wants her students to get excited about what they’re learning. “My teaching philosophy is one of teaching through leadership, not intimidation; of emphasizing cooperation, not competition; instilling confidence; promoting independent, critical thinking, while understanding that different people learn differently and
Maria Navarro is known for her impact on students inside and outside the classroom. “I view teaching as a means to improve the lives of both my students and all who they influence,” she said. “I enjoy mentoring undergraduate students who are committed to making a difference but are still searching for
Kim Skobba supports her students’ success by creating conditions for learning and by building relationships with them. “I seek to be a facilitator of learning in the classroom and provide opportunities to develop 21st-century skills, including leadership, creativity, problem-solving, critical thinking and communication literacy,” she said.
See ANDREWS on page 8
See HERNANDEZ on page 8
See NAVARRO on page 8
See SKOBBA on page 8
Distinguished Research Professors
The title of Distinguished Research Professor recognizes senior faculty members who are internationally recognized for their innovative body of work and its transformational impact on the field. The Professorship is awarded to individuals working at the very top of their discipline, who are recognized as preeminent leaders in their fields of study.
Chamberlain Smith
Andrew Davis Tucker
Robert Newcomb
Sujata Iyengar, professor in the Department of English in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, is perhaps best known as the preeminent authority on Shakespearean appropriation, exploring how audiences engage with, undo or transform Shakespeare. Iyengar has published three singleauthored books,“Shakespeare and Adaptation Theory” (2022), “Shakespeare’s Medical Language” (2011) and “Shades of Difference” (2005), which have transformed the study of Shakespeare and the British Renaissance. She is the founding co-editor of the digital peer-reviewed journal “Borrowers and Lenders: The Journal of Shakespeare and Appropriation.” She has co-authored seven books, producing collections of essays that have enabled and supported communities of practice.
Christopher West, professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, belongs to a small group of internationally recognized parasite glycobiologists. His research explores cellular processes involving various structures, enzymes and roles of glycans, or sugar chains. His studies have identified cell-to-cell mechanisms of environmental sensing and signaling in glycobiology. Some of his discoveries involve the biosynthesis and roles of novel glycan molecules in the model organism Dictyostelium discoideum. One of his contributions has been to describe that organism’s biochemical response pathway to altered oxygen levels, allowing it to respond to its environment’s available oxygen.
Joshua D. Miller, professor in the Department of Psychology in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, is a researcher in the field of psychopathological impairment, specifically in personality disorders with a focus on narcissism and psychopathy. Among his accomplishments is demonstrating that personality disorders are “built” from the same components found in “normal” personality but represent problematic configurations because of their extremity and inflexibility. His research helped lay the groundwork for changes in “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition.” He has produced 325 peer-reviewed publications and book chapters, an edited text on narcissism and a re-edited handbook on the assessment and treatment of antagonism.