The Boise State University Foundation and Provost Martin Schimpf are pleased to announce Lonny Ashworth, John Ziker and Liljana Babinkostova as the 2016 University Foundation Scholar Award recipients. These prestigious awards honor Boise State faculty who have demonstrated ongoing commitment, expertise and accomplishments in teaching, research and creative activity, or professionally related service.
The Boise State University Foundation will honor recipients at its annual board meeting in April and recipients will receive a $3,000 honorarium from the Foundation. In addition, the Foundation has placed a display showing all recipients of the Foundation Scholar Awards since 1992 on the first floor of the Student Union Building near the main staircase.
LONNY ASHWORTH: Teaching Award
Department of Respiratory Therapy
Ashworth is described by his nominator as “a role model for adult education who goes above and beyond the call of duty to facilitate student learning and makes himself available nights and weekends for students who need his help.” The selection committee noted several outstanding aspects of his teaching, including teaching not only the technical material but also nurturing critical thinking skills, professional skepticism and curiosity. As one former student put it, “He educates, fosters your independent learning, and motivates you without you even knowing that he is.” One letter of support indicates he has also been a champion for engaging students in research and uses research as a key teaching tool. Under his guidance, students have presented their research at professional conferences that attract worldwide audiences.
JOHN ZIKER: Research and Creative Activity Award
Department of Anthropology
Ziker’s research is prolific and highly influential in the area of human behavioral ecology. His work emphasizes how kinship links between households impact sharing networks by which food production, distribution and consumption influence nutrition and reproductive decision-making. Ziker’s nominator points to his international reputation for his research with native populations in northern Eurasia. Another letter of support describes the unquestionably high quality of his research. Evidence of this is the fact that Ziker is a verified reviewer for no fewer than eight professional journals and serves as editor for a very prestigious journal. He also was selected by the Fulbright Institute to serve as Visiting Chair of North American Studies at the University of Calgary.
LILJANA BABINKOSTOVA: Service Award
Department of Mathematics
Babinkostova’s nominator indicates that she has worked both tirelessly and systematically to coordinate, enhance and grow student research at Boise State University. Two pillars of her service work include directing the National Science Foundation-funded Research Experiences for Undergraduates site, “Complexity across Disciplines,” and directing the Boise State Student Research Initiative. The REU site, initially funded in 2011, provides for an annual 10-week summer session of faculty-mentored research for mathematics undergraduates. The latter project extends research funding opportunities to graduate and undergraduate students in any discipline.” One letter of support notes that Babinkostova also has taken extra measures to involve high school math and sciences educators in her programs, recruiting STEM faculty to offer the Research Experience for Teachers workshops that attracted dozens of teachers from Treasure Valley schools.
BY: KATHLEEN TUCK PUBLISHED 11:08 AM / FEBRUARY 23, 2016
