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Issued by: Laura L. Hunt
Phone: 414-229-6447
llhunt@uwm.edu
Nov. 9, 2006
UWM Communication Professor Wins UW-System Teaching Excellence Award
Kathryn Olson
MILWAUKEE – Kathryn Olson, professor of communication, has become the first recipient from UWM to be recognized for exemplary teaching with the 2006 Teaching Excellence Award from the University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents.
The Board awards the annual teaching honors to UW System faculty, staff and academic departments that demonstrate an exceptional commitment to instruction, said Regent Danae Davis of Milwaukee, who chairs the Board’s Teaching Excellence Awards selection committee.
John Koker, professor of mathematics, UW-Oshkosh, and the Department of History, UW-Eau Claire, were also chosen for the award.
Other Regents on the selection committee were Charles Pruitt of Shorewood, Jesus Salas of Milwaukee and Christopher Semenas of UW-Parkside.
“These outstanding educators set themselves apart because they recognize teaching as the best opportunity to challenge and inspire students,” Davis said.
Olson says she was not born a teacher; she was born a learner. As such, she seeks to empower other learners by helping them develop critical thinking and arguing skills.
Christina Frey, who worked with Olson both as a student and as a research assistant, said the professor achieves success through her student-centered approach to teaching. “What puts Professor Olson above other teachers is her ability to push students to new levels of critical thinking, while at the same time making learning fun and inviting,” she said.
Olson, who joined the UWM faculty in 1991, has previously won teaching awards from the Wisconsin Communication Association and the Central States Communication Association. She was recognized as a Wisconsin Teaching Scholar in 2002-03 and has been a finalist for multiple teaching awards at UWM. In addition, she has won awards from the American Forensic Association and National Communication Association for her research.
She spearheaded creation of the UWM Graduate Certificate in Rhetorical Leadership program, which supports the development of responsible participation in public discourse.
Recipients will be honored at today’s meeting of the Board of Regents in Madison. Winners receive $5,000 each to be used for professional development.
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