Newswise — Dr. Laura Guertin, the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) Executive Board Member and associate professor of Earth Science at Penn State Brandywine, has been honored for her outstanding teaching and community service by being awarded the 2009 Donald and Carolyn Biggs Award for Excellence in Earth Science Education from the Geological Society of America (GSA).
Dr. Guertin, a resident of Media, PA, who has been teaching in the Penn State System since 2001, is known on the Penn State Brandywine campus for her innovative teaching styles. She has mentored 28 undergraduate students on research and honors projects. Dr. Guertin is an active member of CUR as well as an elected Councilor in the Geosciences Division and has been sitting on the Executive Board since June of 2009.
The Biggs Award, which recognizes innovative and effective teaching of earth science among early career faculty, is GSA’s Geoscience Education Division’s Named Award and is made possible as a result of support from the Donald and Carolyn Biggs Fund, the GSA Geoscience Education Division, and GSA's Education & Outreach Programs.
Vice Provost for Academic Affairs, Blannie E. Bowen, says, “Penn State aspires to become the most student centered public research university in the country [therefore] we are firmly committed to engaging our undergraduate students through a variety of approaches, techniques, and venues. Many of our outstanding faculty members are already engaging their students by effectively integrating their research programs into their classroom and instructional activities. Dr. Laura Guertin is one such faculty member at the Brandywine campus who has gained national acclaim for her innovative research initiatives and her ability to get students engaged in and enthusiastic about undergraduate research. We are indeed pleased that she has been awarded the Biggs Award for Excellence in Earth Science Education. Dr. Guertin has already received many awards within the Penn State community and it is most gratifying that external agencies, groups, and organizations share our perspectives about the quality of her teaching and learning activities.”
Since 1978, CUR has worked to support and promote high-quality undergraduate student-faculty collaborative research and scholarship. CUR was founded on the belief that faculty members enhance their teaching and contribution to society by, not only remaining active in research, but also by involving their undergraduate students in these scholarly activities.
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