Governor McDonnell Honors 2010 Outstanding Faculty Award Recipients

Press Release

Governor Bob McDonnell today honors 12 Virginia educators as recipients of the 2010 Outstanding Faculty Award (OFA) for excellence in teaching, research and public service. The faculty members from public and private colleges and universities across the Commonwealth will be recognized during an awards ceremony at the Jefferson Hotel as part of the annual OFA program administered by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) and sponsored by Dominion Resources.

Speaking about the award recipients, Governor McDonnell remarked, "This year's recipients come from across Virginia and represent different institutions and academic disciplines. Yet all 12 share a commitment to helping their students, their campus communities, and the citizens of the Commonwealth who benefit from their scholarly research and academic knowledge."

SCHEV Executive Director Daniel J. LaVista commented, "These faculty members were selected by their peers as among the best and brightest that Virginia's colleges and universities have to offer. Each year the Council and Dominion Resources are awed by the extraordinary achievements of these inspiring educators."

William C. Hall Jr., a Dominion vice president and president of the Dominion Foundation, noted, "Dominion values the opportunity to recognize these distinguished faculty members for their unparalleled contributions to the Commonwealth's educational system, economy and cultural resources."
2010 Virginia Outstanding Faculty Award Recipients

Terry Alford is a Professor of History at Northern Virginia Community College, where he helped found the Honors Program and has taught since 1972.

Romesh Batra, the Clifton C. Garvin Professor of Engineering Science and Mechanics at Virginia Tech, focuses on studying the response of structures exposed to impact loads, such as those produced by improvised explosive devices.

Maura Borrego is an Assistant Professor and Director of the Graduate Program in the Department of Engineering Education at Virginia Tech, where her ongoing work focuses on learning in interdisciplinary graduate education programs.

Lennis Echterling is Professor of Counseling Psychology at James Madison University, where he has taught for more than 23 years, studying the psychological resilience of groups that have experienced trauma.

Teresa Keller, Professor of Mass Communications, has taught at Emory & Henry College for 24 years and is co-author of Television News: A handbook for reporting, writing, shooting, editing, and producing.

Paul Marcus is the Haynes Professor of Law at the College of William and Mary and founder of the Literature and the Law Program at the Central Virginia Regional Jail.

Margo Mastropieri is a University Professor of Special Education at George Mason University, whose research has led to improved opportunities for inclusion of students with disabilities in general education settings.

Ellen Mayock is a Professor in the Department of Romance Languages at Washington and Lee University, where she specializes in Spanish language, literatures, and cultures, and serves as a core faculty member in the Women's and Gender Studies Program.

Mark Patterson is Associate Professor of Marine Science at the College of William and Mary, where he directs the Autonomous Systems Laboratory at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science.

J. Peter Pham is Associate Professor of Justice Studies, Political Science, and Africana Studies at James Madison University and the former director of the University's Nelson Institute for International and Public Affairs.

Lisa Russ Spaar is Professor of English and Creative Writing at the University of Virginia, where she served as administrator and then director of the nationally acclaimed Creative Writing Program for 11 years.

Doyle Temple is a Professor of Physics and the Chair of the Department of Physics at Hampton University, where he has taught for nearly 16 years.

Since the first awards ceremony in 1987, a total of 280 Virginia faculty members, including the 2010 recipients, have received this high honor. Photos and additional biographical information about each of this year's recipients can be found on the web at www.schev.edu/AdminFaculty/OFAprogramIndex.asp.

Dominion is one of the nation's largest producers and transporters of energy, with a portfolio of more than 27,500 megawatts of generation. Dominion operates the nation's largest natural gas storage system and serves retail energy customers in 12 states. For more information about Dominion, visit the company's website at www.dom.com.

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