University of Pittsburgh Honors Five for Outstanding Teaching

PITTSBURGH, Feb. 4 -- The University of Pittsburgh has honored five professors for their outstanding contributions in the classroom with the 1999 Chancellor's Distinguished Teaching Award.

"The very existence of this award underscores the high institutional priority that must be assigned to our instructional responsibilities," Pitt Chancellor Mark A. Nordenberg said. "The efforts of these individuals stand as inspiring examples of excellence in the role of University teacher."

The 1999 awardees are:

Richard Blevins, associate professor of English, Greensburg campus. In his 20 years of teaching, Blevins has been noted for his innovative approaches to teaching and for helping his students find their "voices" as writers. He has established a national reputation as an editor, literary critic, and scholar, and has been previously honored at the Greensburg campus for distinguished teaching.

Georgia K. Duker, Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, School of Medicine. Duker is being honored for her ability to make difficult material not only comprehensible, but exciting, to first and second-year medical students in her ten classes. Her sense of humor and love of subject matter is evident not only to the graduate medical students, but to the grade-school children she teaches as a volunteer.

Heidi Feldman, M.D., Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine. Feldman's vision and dedication to individuals with disabilities led to the creation of a new area of concentration in Disabilities Medicine at Pitt's School of Medicine and the University, Community Leaders and Individuals with Disabilities Center (UCLID).

Ronald G. Hoelzeman, Department of Electrical Engineering, School of Engineering. In his 28 years of teaching at the University, Hoelzeman has been honored for his teaching by students and colleagues, by national companies and by his international professional society. He was instrumental in establishing the interdisciplinary computer engineering program and in designing the school's laboratories.

Gary P. Stoehr, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy. Stoehr was instrumental in revising the School of Pharmacy's curriculum, organizing a leadership retreat for student leaders and incorporating new, student-centered approaches to teaching. School of Pharmacy students have honored Stoehr twice for his teaching excellence.

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