During the Honors Convocation in April, President Marjorie Hass presented the Homer P. Rainey Award, on behalf of the Austin College Board of Trustees, to John Williams ’84, chaplain, and Karen Nelson, associate vice president for institutional effectiveness and professor of psychology. The annual award recognizes a member of the faculty or staff for outstanding achievement or service to Austin College. Two awards occasionally are presented as deemed appropriate by the board.
President Hass and Mike Imhoff, vice president for Academic Affairs, also announced three faculty awards for outstanding teaching, selected by a faculty and student committee. Two of those recognized are put forth as nominees for external teaching excellence competitions.
Jerry Johnson, professor of business administration and economics and Caruth Chair of Management, received the Austin College Excellence in Teaching and Campus Leadership Award. A member of the faculty since 1983, he currently serves as dean of Social Sciences.
David Baker, associate professor of physics, is the Austin College nominee for the 2011 CASE Professor of the Year excellence in teaching program. Baker has been a member of the faculty since 2000.
Wayne Crannell, associate professor of music, is the College’s Minnie Stevens Piper Professor nominee. Director of vocal music at Austin College, Crannell has been a member of the faculty since 1995.