CoA Faculty and Staff Receive Highest Honors
College of Agriculture Professors Receive Highest Awards
Three professors in the College of Agriculture were honored with the highest award given by Utah State University. Luella Oaks, Brian Warnick
and Donna Minch were among the professors/advisors selected this year to receive the Robins Award. Because of the outstanding efforts of these remarkable mentors, the lives of their students have been changed forever.
Luella Oaks, lecturer in Family and Consumer Sciences Education, received the Faculty Advisor of the Year award. This award is for facultyadvisors who display personal interest in helping students by going out of their way to provide superior academic advisement.
“It is amazing to see how much students have learned when they come back after graduation,” said Oaks. “To hear about your influence in students’ lives, is something you never forget. This award was something that I never expected. I feel extremely honored to have received it.”
Kennedy Spears, an Agricultural Communication and Journalism student said, “There are not many professors like Luella Oaks. The most important thing I learned from her was dedication. She does everything she possibly can to help her students succeed, and that is something I really admire. She always taught that if you dedicate yourself and help people do the same, you will succeed in whatever it is you set out to do in life. She truly was a great professor.”
Brian Warnick, associate professor in the School of Applied Sciences, Technology and Education received the Professor of the Year award. This award goes to a faculty member at USU who displays personal interest in the students and makes classes both challenging and interesting.
“I have by far the very best job in the world,” said Warnick. “I work with the very best people and get to do what I love every single day. There is nothing better than seeing the students you have taught become successful in the career they are pursuing and feeling like you had something to do with that.”
Donna Minch, Academic Advisor of Off-Campus Programs was awarded the Professional Advisor of the Year award. This is given to a professional advisor at USU who has provided students with outstanding academic advising.
“By far one of the most rewarding things about my position as the student advisor is when a student says they would have never finished their degree without my constant support and keeping them on track,” said Minch. “This is something you can never forget hearing from a student. It makes the award that much more of an honor because my students are not just advisees, they are lifelong friends.”
Because of the efforts of William E. Robins, and the Sigma Nu Fraternity; the fund that started supporting this award in 1949 still exists today.
“The College of Agriculture recognizes and shows their deepest appreciation and support for those professors and academic advisors that keep the traditions of education that USU was founded upon alive,” said Janet Anderson, associate dean of the College of Agriculture.
For more information contact the USU development office at http://www.usu.edu/advancement/ or visit http://www.usu.edu/traditions/robinsawards/index.cfm.
Writer: Sarah Hatch
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