Golden Apples

“Dr. Ulappa is by far the best professor that I have had at Boise State. […] She was such a hype woman when it came to writing our scientific resumes. She made us feel better about what we have accomplished so far and helped us realize how big certain pieces of our life have been to our futures. She acknowledged all of the hard work we were doing and respected us for that and we all respected her. By being so approachable and engaging, she created such a loop of respect for everyone involved. […] All around, she had been such a wholesome and caring professor.”

“She was willing to help students outside of the classroom not only with assignments, but with graduate school applications, job applications, and so much more. She truly cares about each of her student’s success and changed my life because of that.”

“It is clear to me that Dr. Pakala genuinely cares about the students he works with, rather than just their academic successes. […] Dr. Pakala also emphasizes the importance of working together and striving to really understand by running virtual office hours at a time that works for as many students as possible and organizes Peer Educators to supplement with tutoring sessions so that there is at least one each week that works for each student in his lecture. He is an excellent educator, and I am grateful to have both learned from him and worked alongside him in my academic journey.”

“Dr. Dimand has been one of my favorite professors I have had in my entire undergraduate and graduate career. […] She has an obvious passion for Public Service that shows through her teaching. Dr. Dimand made her class a safe environment which helped students like myself feel comfortable to speak up in class and ask questions. Starting a Master’s program in the middle of covid was very challenging at times. […]Dr. Dimand made sure to make her students know that we are all important and that our mental health matters.”

“Dr. Nafees Alam has shown time and time again his dedication to his students. […] During the time I was his TA, we had multiple meetings after classes to talk about student involvement and how ever class went. He takes the time to plan out everything and when he commits to something, he is all in. […] I have seen fellow students grow just within a few months of taking one of Dr. Nafees Alam’s courses, through my student lens.”

“I returned to Boise State after many years away from school. I wasn’t very successful the first time around and was anxious about returning. Dr. Loo has been an integral part of my success this time around. He is consistently available to his students and responds within minutes to resolve any questions or issues that arise. In one of my mid course evaluations I shared some struggles I had with some of the material. Within a day he had reached out and set up a time for us to go over the material and make sure my understanding was solid. […] For the first time in my academic career, I feel like I can succeed and if there is a problem, I have someone in my court who can help me find the solution.”

“Kate is the most approachable and kindest individual on campus. She cares deeply about every student’s success, regardless of their beliefs or position; I firmly believe that there is no person better that truly embodies the spirit of the Golden Apple Award. Kate recognizes that every student approaches life from a different perspective. Not only does she respect those views, but she caters everything in her classes to best provide a useful curriculum to students.”

“I have found lots of respect for Jack in the year that I have had classes with him. He has gone above and beyond to get feedback and input from our class, showing multiple times that he cared about the growth and learning of our class, rather than just following a rigid schedule. […]He has been very inclusive of people’s pronouns and has made sure to have everyone participate in class. Most noble however, is that when he noticed that many people were struggling, he tripled his office hours and provided many different in person and remote options for receiving help outside of class.”

“I could tell that she truly cared about me and how I was doing. […] That has meant more to me than words could ever express. […] Every day we start class with a ‘community check-in’ with a daily question to check in with each other on how we’re doing. This has set an environment firmly centered on fostering friendships. We care about each other and have been naturally inclined to be inclusive of everyone in class because of the environment she has and continues to create daily.”