Board of Trustees Awards
The Board of Trustees Awards for Excellence acknowledge and provide system-wide recognition for consistently superior professional achievement of our college and university teaching and service faculty.
2023 Board of Trustees Awards
The 2023 BOT Award Nomination Guidelines are now available for Minnesota State faculty and staff on the BOT Awards page of ASA Connect (Sign in with StarID@MinnState.edu). The nomination deadline is November 1, 2022.
2022 Board of Trustees Awards
The Board of Trustees Awards virtual ceremony recognized the 2022 recipients on April 20, 2022. Colleagues shared in the joyful pride that board members, faculty, students, and campus administrators take in these exceptional teachers and administrative service faculty.
View the 2022 Board of Trustees Awards for Excellence Program.
Lisa Bergin
Philosophy
Minneapolis College
Dr. Bergin seamlessly integrates a wide variety of high-impact teaching strategies and innovations that calm student fears, build identity-safe classrooms, and lead to student success.
Michael Dando
English, Communication Arts and Literature
St. Cloud State University
Dr. Dando focuses his teaching, service, and research on community-oriented, student-driven opportunities to promote student engagement, critical thinking, and authentic self-expression.
Melissa Hanzsek-Brill
Mathematics
St. Cloud State University
Dr. Hanzsek-Brill grounds her teaching on the best of inclusive and active learning strategies to meet student needs. With current and future teachers enrolled in most of her classes, her work ultimately impacts many more students.
Alex Layne
Technical Communications
Metro State University
Dr. Layne’s unwavering commitment to students contributes to her success. She encourages students to try new ideas and embrace failure as a step to mastery, and makes the learning environment a safe, culturally relevant, and responsive one for all students.
Lindsy Mason O'Brien
English
Lake Superior College
Mason O’Brien has both a devotion to her students and a talent for involving them in their learning. She encourages students to explore content that is meaningful to them and to experience the power of writing and communication in making change happen.
Katie Nelson
Anthropology
Inver Hills Community College
Dr. Nelson has focused her career on exploring and honoring cultural difference and promoting equity and inclusion. Nelson reduced high costs of textbooks for students by helping to develop the first comprehensive introductory biological anthropology OER.
Kleber Ortiz
Education
Minneapolis College
A teacher of future teachers, Ortiz sees his role in the classroom as a facilitator of knowledge, serving both as a teacher and a student. His collaborative approach offers students the freedom to learn from each other and expand their education.
Erika Bailey-Johnson
Sustainability Director
Bemidji State University
A vocal champion for the ideals of equity and inclusion, particularly for Indigenous communities, Bailey-Johnson mentors students and serves as a coordinator and one of the instructors for the People of the Environment course.
Abdullah Abu Hussein
Information Systems
St. Cloud State University
Using creativity and a passion for mentoring and advising students, Dr. Abu Hussein carefully crafts his labs and assignments and taps a wide spectrum of teaching tools and techniques to accelerate student learning.
Heidi Anderson
English Language Learners/English
Minnesota State Community and Technical College
Highly focused on transforming the lives of students, Anderson improves student learning by building relationships, promoting a sense of community, and limiting barriers to students access and understanding of course materials.
Carina Belinco
Biology
Normandale Community College
Recipient of many teaching awards, Dr. Belinco works tirelessly to help students make connections between science and their lived experiences, fostering their curiosity and helping them understand biological concepts and their impacts.
Brian Bich
Biology
Lake Superior College
Appreciated for his teaching style and welcoming learning environment, Bich engages students with memorable real-life examples and other approaches to help them master complex material and creates learning resources for them.
Boyd Bradbury
Leadership and Learning
Minnesota State University Moorhead
A true innovator, Dr. Bradbury developed the first stand-alone doctoral program in the history of Minnesota State and expanded accessibility through fully online graduate programs, among other milestones.
Susan Bremer
Healthcare Administrative Specialist
Central Lakes College
A pioneer, Bremer developed hybrid and online options to meet student needs for flexibility well before their popularity grew and helps student embrace questioning as a normal part of the learning process.
Aaron Brown
Speech
Hibbing Community College
Brown fosters student interest and enthusiasm through real-life assignments that include producing newscasts, completing community solution projects, and writing and delivering a speech that persuades fellow students to make charitable donations.
Andrew Carlson
Professional Communication
Metro State University
Dr. Carlson brings the classroom to life for his students through engaging discussions, team-based assignments, projects for community organizations, and other activities based on adult learning principles.
Joan Carter
Engineering
Inver Hills Community College
A licensed professional engineer, Carter helps students understand complex concepts, works to make all students feel a sense of belonging in the classroom, and has developed courses that easily transfer toward bachelor’s degrees.
Simran Chahal
Chemistry
Saint Paul College
Dr. Chahal strives to show students the relevancy of chemistry inside and outside the classroom, helping them connect with STEM mentors and leaders and encouraging them to apply what they are learning.
Jenny Corey-Gruenes
English
Riverland Community College
With a clear focus on student growth, Corey-Gruenes spends time one-one-one with students to understand and guide them, develops assignments that support their learning, and started the Liberal Arts Club for students.
Kristina Ehnert
Accounting and Business
Central Lakes College
Ehnert’s teaching philosophy “I do. We do. You do.” helps her reach students with all learning styles and shape engaging experiences that help students overcome barriers and meet high academic expectations.
Alejandra Estrin Dashe
Social Science
Metro State University
Dr. Estrin Dashe applies high-impact learning practices, such as the flipped classroom where work outside of class serves as preparation for in-class discussion, activities, and project-based assignments, to ignite student learning.
Sandra Gustafson
Nursing
Hibbing Community College
A gifted teacher and leader, Gustafson has engaged students, supported nursing faculty, led the introduction of a simulation experience for students, and helped drive new course assessment approaches.
Renee Guyer
Biology
South Central College
Named the college’s 2021 Outstanding Faculty Member of the Year, Guyer shares her passion for science with her students, incorporating strategies and approaches that help students grasp often complex material.
Amanda Hakemian
Chemistry
Normandale Community College
Dr. Hakemian embraces instructional experimentation, exploring formats such as online learning and using real-world examples, demonstrations, and short animations to prepare students for working on “Now You Try” problems, among other strategies.
Tonya Jo Hansen
Economics
Minnesota State University Moorhead
With a rare ability to guide, advise, and mentor students in ways that help them achieve their goals, Dr. Hansen excels at connecting with students and adapts her teaching to meet student needs.
Catherine Haslag
Chemistry
Riverland Community College
Not only has Haslag created courses for students and helped them understand and apply scientific methods, but she also developed the Science Fair Mentoring Project to introduce elementary students to the joys of science.
Alex Howell
Radiography
Minnesota State College Southeast
Deeply committed to students, Howell encourages them as prospective students, sets lessons plans that make learning interesting, helps them learn from each other, coordinates clinical rotations, and treats each student with respect.
Simon Huelsbeck
Art
Rochester Community and Technical College
Winner of awards for both art and art education, Huelsbeck shares his love of art with students, as a teacher in the classroom, director and curator of the RCTC Gallery, and mentor to students and local artists.
Mark Johnson
Political Science, History, and Geography
Minnesota State Community and Technical College
Johnson blends perspectives from history, political science, and geography for lessons, assignments, and other activities, such as podcasts, which help students understand and connect historical context to the issues that matter to them today.
Katey Leverson
Liberal Arts and Sciences
St. Cloud Technical and Community College
Leverson strives to stimulate student interest in psychology, encourage and challenge thinking skills, and make the course material relevant through approaches that include discussions, writing assignments, and a variety of creative activities.
Michelle Maldonado
Nursing
Anoka-Ramsey Community College
From the beginning of every term, Maldonado centers her teaching philosophy around building relationships and mentoring her students, helping visualize themselves as nurses and working on individualized plans for success.
Anthony Marchetti
Art
Anoka-Ramsey Community College
A 2016 Fulbright Teaching/Research Scholar, multiple Minnesota State Arts Board grant recipient, and well-regarded photographer with numerous solo and group exhibitions of his work, Marchetti offers his students a wealth of experience.
Paul Melchior
Biology
North Hennepin Community College
Melchior applies a learning by doing philosophy in his courses, finding new ways to hook students and trigger their curiosity, as well as working with others to expand offerings for students, such as the Biology Study Abroad Program in Ireland.
Sara Morgan
Nursing
Anoka-Ramsey Community College
An unwavering advocate for expanding access to nursing education, college alumnus Morgan supports students with care and responsiveness, brings her professional clinical work experiences into the classroom, and embraces new teaching strategies.
Mark Novotny
Construction Electrician
Anoka Technical College
A Construction Electrician program graduate, Novotny returned as faculty to share valuable content expertise and experiences as an electrician with students, always adapting assignments and approaches to ensure student success.
Donna Pawlowski
Sociology and Communication Studies
Bemidji State University
Architect of the BSU Communications Studies program, Dr. Pawlowski focuses on improving student learning with community-based capstone projects, assignments, and work to train others in service-learning.
Catherine Pulling
French
Normandale Community College
Dr. Pulling has devoted her career to serving students in language instruction, expanding their global and cultural opportunities and perspectives and along the way receiving 40 Phi Theta Kappa Golden Apple awards for teaching excellence.
Amy Rawson
Communication
Century College
Instrumental in the development of many courses, including the Certificate Capstone Course, Dr. Rawson employs collaborative teaching strategies in the classroom, making the most of various types of technology and innovative activities.
Jitendra Singh
Health Services Administration
Minnesota State University Moorhead
Known for his productivity, dedication to student success, and unfailing positive attitude, Dr. Singh constantly creates new content and uses a wide set of teaching tools to reach traditional and non-traditional students.
Jennifer Sippel
Information Studies and Library Information Technology
Minneapolis College
Whether adopting materials so students never have to purchase a textbook, incorporating new technology, or leading two Minnesota State Shark Tank Innovation grants projects, she constantly looks to innovate and support student growth.
Kelly Sjerven
Biology and Natural Science
Rainy River Community College
A leader in assessment practices, Sjerven helped revamp the college’s assessment process and embraces new methods of teaching and learning, as well as experiential learning, translating into a hands-on active learning environment for students.
Heather Sklenicka
Chemistry
Rochester Community and Technical College
With a keen focus on students, Dr. Sklenicka adjusts her approaches to homework, format, and assessment to help students reach learning outcomes, builds community in the classroom, and shares her expertise with other faculty.
Kari Slinden
Agriculture
Ridgewater College
Kari Slinden has forged partnerships that give students valuable field experience, and thanks to her ability to connect with students, faculty, and industry, she serves as a role model and informal leader in the college and community.
Carie Statz
Marketing
Dakota County Technical College
Dr. Statz strives to bring the real world into her teaching, tapping an advisory committee of marketing professionals and incorporating activities and projects that offer students opportunities to develop professional work for their portfolios.
Thomas Sundquist
Mathematics
Normandale Community College
The winner of 17 Phi Theta Kappa Golden Apple awards for his inspirational teaching, Dr. Sundquist believes that learning should be a joy, and students recognize that he genuinely cares about their learning and success.
Anne Tuoy-Giel
Health Sciences and Nursing
St. Cloud Technical and Community College
Tuoy-Giel dedicates her teaching to ensuring that she meets and supports her students where they are in their academic journey, helping them connect theory with real-life situations to enhance clinical judgment and nursing decisions.
Sara Van Asten
Mathematics
North Hennepin Community College
No matter the course, Van Asten takes a collaborative approach to actively involve students in the material and remains committed to championing student success and advocating for resources to advance teaching and learning.
Kristyn VanderWaal Mills
Biology
Saint Paul College
Dr. VanderWaal Mills engages students with high-impact teaching methods and supports the education of low-income students through her successful pursuit and administration of a grant that provides scholarships and mentoring.
Jay Vargas
Sociology
Minnesota West Community and Technical College
Going the extra mile for his students, Dr. Vargas guides and encourages them to build a stronger foundation of cultural competence, helping them to expand their perspectives, as well as to apply course material on a real-time basis.
Gus Vettleson
Mathematics
Northwest Technical College
Vettleson works to both reduce barriers for students and to offer a curriculum that allows students to easily see how classroom concepts will help them on the job and that relates to hands-on instruction in the college’s technical programs.
Valerie Wallingford
Business Administration
Bemidji State University
A tireless student advocate and mentor, an exceptional scholar and teacher, and believer in the inclusive classroom, Dr. Wallingford sets the stage for success by building bridges between students’ learning and their lived experiences.
Breann Wozniak
Biology
Ridgewater College
Wozniak engages students through meaningful small group work and related assignments, lessons that are tailored to student backgrounds and interests, and applied work, always encouraging students to take ownership of their learning.
Sara Granberg-Rademacker
Director, University Advising
Minnesota State University, Mankato
Granberg-Rademacker developed a successful plan to focus the advising center on the most vulnerable populations who were disproportionately struggling and led the transition to a new centralized, expanded advising model.
Julia Roland
Director, First Year Programs
Minnesota State University Moorhead
Roland works closely with staff and faculty to provide a better experience for first-year students, whether that involves infusing new technology, helping transform curriculum and services, or advancing equity and inclusion.
Paula Scheevel
Director, Housing and Residence Life
Winona State University
Sheevel navigated the pandemic’s impact on student housing wisely, effectively, and safely, adding to many other milestones that include starting a night student security program and pioneering new living and learning communities.
Sam Vang
Academic Advisor, College of Management
Metro State University
Through his strong leadership, Vang has helped build a community for Asian American Pacific Islander students, sharing his cultural knowledge and advocating in many ways for equity and inclusion.
Kathryn Young
Director, Office of Clinical Experiences
Co-Director, Center for Excellence in Professional Practice
St. Cloud State University
Young supports the development of prospective teachers through her collaborations with faculty, staff, and school districts, as well as through partnerships to increase the diversity of teaching staff in Minnesota K-12 schools.
Contact
Email Catherine Ford at botawards@minnstate.edu with questions.
