UT System Board of Regents announces outstanding educators for 2019

The University of Texas System Board of Regents will once again recognize exceptional UT educators who best exemplify excellence, innovation and commitment to student success.

The 2019 Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award will be presented to 27 faculty members from all 14 UT academic and health institutions during the Board of Regents meeting Aug. 14 in Austin. Each recipient will receive a certificate, a medallion and $25,000 in appreciation of their impact on students and their institutions.

“These educators are dedicated to continually looking for new and better ways to inspire students to learn and succeed,” Board of Regents Chairman Kevin Eltife said. “And they’re ensuring the next generation, whether they be teachers, scientists or health care providers, is armed with passion and knowledge. Their contributions are immeasurable.”

One of the nation’s largest awards program for recognizing educators in higher education, the Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Awards program was established by the Board of Regents in 2008. Since then, the Board of Regents has presented more than $19 million to over 700 UT educators.

“This awards program is an investment in both faculty and students, because when it comes to student success – and subsequently real world success – recruiting and retaining great faculty is the key,” UT System Chancellor James B. Milliken said. “I’m grateful to the Board of Regents for its continued commitment to great teaching, and I’m thankful that these exceptional educators are serving our students and Texas.”

Nominees undergo a series of rigorous evaluations by students, peer faculty and external reviewers. The review panels consider a range of activities and criteria in their evaluations of a candidate's teaching performance, including classroom expertise, curricula quality, innovative course development and student learning outcomes.

Recipients of the 2019 Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award are:

Academic institutions

• Amy Austin, UT Arlington
• Holly Hungerford-Kresser, UT Arlington
• David Laude, UT Austin
• Alison Norman, UT Austin
• Noah Sasson, UT Dallas
• Amandeep Sra, UT Dallas
• Martine Ceberio, UT El Paso
• Denise Lujan, UT El Paso
• Stephanie Fife, UT Permian Basin
• Jason Lagapa, UT Permian Basin
• Sue Anne Chew, UT Rio Grande Valley
• Hyun-chul Lee, UT Rio Grande Valley
• Stacey Davis, UT San Antonio
• Dixie Shaw-Tillmon, UT San Antonio
• Amy Hayes, UT Tyler
• Lauren Johnson, UT Tyler

Health institutions

• John Herring, UT Southwestern        
• Won Lee, UT Southwestern
• Dawnelle Schatte, UT Medical Branch         
• M. Kristen Peek, UT Medical Branch
• Eileen Lafer, UT Health San Antonio
• Michaell Huber, UT Health San Antonio
• Susan Fenton, UTHealth Houston
• Manickam Kumaravel, UTHealth Houston
• Michael Frumovitz, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center
• Thomas Aloia, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center
• Vanessa Casanova, UT Health Science Center at Tyler

About The University of Texas System
For more than 130 years, The University of Texas System has been committed to improving the lives of Texans and people all over the world through education, research and health care. With 14 institutions, an enrollment of nearly 240,000 students and an operating budget of $19.5 billion (FY 2019), the UT System is one of the largest public university systems in the United States. UT institutions produce more than 60,000 graduates annually and award more than one-third of the state’s undergraduate degrees and almost two-thirds of its health professional degrees. Collectively, UT-owned and affiliated hospitals and clinics accounted for more than 8.2 million outpatient visits and 1.6 million hospital days last year. Across UT institutions, research and development expenditures total $2.9 billion – the second highest among U.S. public higher education systems – and the UT System is regularly ranked among the top 10 most innovative universities in the world. The UT System also is one of the largest employers in Texas, with more than 21,000 faculty – including Nobel laureates and members of the National Academies – and more than 83,000 health care professionals, researchers and support staff.