On May 16, the College of Education honored long-serving and outstanding CoE faculty and staff members during an end of semester celebration. Recipients of the university’s Staff Service Awards, the College of Education Staff Excellence Awards, and the Dean’s Distinguished Faculty Awards were announced and recognized for their tenure and contributions.
The University of Texas at Austin Staff Service Awards
The UT Staff Service Awards celebrates and recognizes the contributions of committed staff members and are presented in recognition of length of service. The first service award is given for ten (10) years of eligible service. After that, service awards are presented in five-year intervals as eligible service accrues.
- Noe Benavidez
- Willie Castrejon
- Beth Cooper
- Chelsea Fernandez
- Alicia Garza
- Colleen Moore
- Chaz Gardinier
- Leticia Grimaldo
- Pamela Larick
- Olga Macha
- Leticia Martinez
- Regina Smuts
- Eusebia Vargas
- Ryan Baldwin
- Stephen Flynn
- Rosie Garza
- Phillip Salazar
- Marsha Tapley
College of Education Staff Excellence Awards
Nominations were submitted throughout the spring semester by both faculty and staff members for the Staff Excellence Awards. For each nomination, the selection committee considered the following factors:
- Impact on the college/university
- Demonstration of a high level of collaboration, cooperation and communication
- Consistent performance at a level above normal job requirements
2022 Recipients
- John Smart, Building Manager, Information Technology Office
- Jenny Ann Eskew, Senior Administrative Associate, Department of Kinesiology and Health Education
- Pam Larick, Admissions/Graduate Coordinator in the Department of Educational Psychology
College of Education Leadership Excellence Award
- Patty Coffman, Executive Assistant in the Department of Kinesiology and Health Education
Dean’s Distinguished Faculty Awards
Dean’s Distinguished Research Award
The Dean’s Distinguished Research Award recognizes a College of Education faculty member with a distinguished and sustained record of research and scholarly contributions.
2022 Recipient: Sarah Powell, Associate Professor in the Department of Special Education and Associate Director of the Meadows Center for Preventing Educational Risk
Dean’s Distinguished Early Career Award
The Dean’s Distinguished Early Career Award recognizes an early career tenure-track faculty member who has compiled a distinguished record of research.
2022 Recipients: Denisa Gándara, Assistant Professor in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy and Miguel Pinedo, Assistant Professor in the Department of Kinesiology and Health Education
Dean’s Distinguished Teaching Award
The Dean’s Distinguished Teaching Award recognizes a faculty member in the College of Education who has a distinguished record of teaching at the undergraduate and/or graduate level, and has been teaching in the college for at least 5 years.
2022 Recipient: Jessica Toste, Associate Professor in the Department of Special Education and a fellow on the Myers Centennial Professorship.
Dean’s Distinguished Career Faculty Award
The Dean’s Distinguished Career Faculty Award recognizes a career faculty member (professional track) in the College of Education who has a distinguished record in at least two of the following areas: teaching at the undergraduate and/or graduate level, research, or service.
2022 Recipient: Debra Cantú, Associate Professor of Practice in Educational Leadership and Policy
Dean’s Distinguished Equity & Community Service Award
The Dean’s Distinguished Equity & Community Service Award recognizes a faculty member in the College of Education who has compiled a distinguished record of centering equity and inclusion in extraordinary service and mentoring to students, staff, and/or faculty, their program, department, the college, the University of Texas at Austin, and broader communities.
2022 Recipient: Angela Valenzuela, the H. E. Hartfelder/The Southland Corporation Regents Chair in Human Resource Development. Dr. Valenzuela is a professor in the Educational Policy and Planning Program within the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy, and also holds a courtesy appointment in the Cultural Studies in Education Program within the Department of Curriculum and Instruction. In addition, she serves as the director of the University of Texas Center for Education Policy.
