Five honored with faculty awards

Faculty members in English, biological sciences, weed science, computer science, and the Mississippi State Extension Service are winners of the 1998 Alumni Association's Faculty Awards.

At recent ceremonies, the annual honors program recognized "significant contributions to the welfare of humankind and the stature of Mississippi State University" in the categories of classroom teaching, research and service.

Drs. Martin W. Brunson, Armando de la Cruz, Melanie Eckford-Prossor, Anthony Skjellum, and David R. Shaw join more than 150 other colleagues who have been honored since the program's inception in 1965. Committees of faculty, students and alumni made the selections.

Each winner receives a plaque and monetary award. This year's honor group includes:

Receiving 1998 MSU Alumni Association Faculty Awards are (l-r) Drs. David R. Shaw, Anthony Skjellum, Martin W. Brunson, Melanie Eckford-Prossor, and Armando de la Cruz.

• Martin W. Brunson, Service Award. A Mississippi State Cooperative Extension Service fisheries specialist, he was cited as "a catalyst in linking people across the state" with the university's aquaculture research. Brunson holds degrees from Mississippi College and MSU.
• Armando de la Cruz, Upper Level (junior and senior) Teaching Award. The biological sciences professor's class lectures are said by one student to be "like watching the Discovery Channel because he makes his subjects come alive." De la Cruz holds degrees from the University of the Philippines, American University and the University of Georgia.
• Melanie Eckford-Prossor, Lower Level (freshman and sophomore) Teaching Award. The assistant English professor's teaching style was cited by one student as being "the" reason that she changed her major from a science field to English. Eckford-Prossor holds bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees from the University of California at Los Angeles.
• David R. Shaw, Graduate Level Teaching Award. A colleague praised the weed science professor's ability "to instill in students a curiosity to learn more and a means by which they can move beyond rote memorization." Shaw holds degrees from Cameron University in Lawton, Okla., and Oklahoma State.
• Anthony Skjellum, Research Award. His peers recognize the associate professor of computer science as "a dominant factor in the establishment of the university as a major player in the nation's High Performance Computing and Communications initiative." Skjellum holds bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees from the California Institute of Technology.

  John Correro, alumni association executive director, said the recognition ceremony "is one of the most important programs" the organization sponsors each year.

  "It gives us the opportunity to simultaneously honor a select group, as well as all of Mississippi State's faculty members for their continuing contributions to the university's success," Correro added.

  
  

   

  

  

  This World Wide Web version of MSU Memo was marked up by Chris Brown <brownc@ur.msstate.edu>.
  For information about Mississippi State University, contact msuinfo@ur.msstate.edu.

  Last modified: Friday, 14-Jun-2002 15:59:56 CDT.
  URL: http://msuinfo.ur.msstate.edu/msu_memo/1998/05-11-98/faculty.htm
  Mississippi State University is an equal opportunity institution.