UT Dallas Center for Teaching and Learning Newsletter

April 2025, Issue 25

Faculty Honored for Teaching Excellence

This month’s CTL Newsletter is dedicated to highlighting professors from a wide range of disciplines who were honored at the Eighth Annual Celebration of Teaching Excellence. UT Dallas President Richard C. Benson and Provost Inga H. Musselman presented faculty and staff with their awards. Below are the winners in each category and those earning honorable mentions.

Since joining UT Dallas in 2011, Dr. Oziel Rios has been recognized for his innovative, student-centered teaching. From the start, his first-year mechanical engineering students are immersed in hands-on learning by designing and testing model wind turbines using laser cutters, tensile testing machines, and wind tunnels. His commitment to experiential learning is matched by his use of classroom technology, including a flipped classroom model and an augmented reality (AR) pilot program to help students visualize complex shapes in three dimensions.

A first-generation college graduate from the Rio Grande Valley, Rios is known for his mentorship, approachability and dedication to student success, both in and beyond the classroom. Students say he is approachable, generous with his time, and deeply invested in their academic and professional success. They describe him not only as an excellent teacher, but as a mentor and a friend. He also has been honored with the UT Dallas President’s Teaching Excellence Award in Online and Blended Instruction and a CTL Instructional Improvement Award for his AR work.

Dr. Fatemeh Hassanipour joined UT Dallas in 2009 with a freshly minted PhD as one of the founding members of the Department of Mechanical Engineering. Since then, she has been widely recognized for her exceptional teaching, contributions to engineering education, and impactful student mentorship. She played a key role in curriculum design, developed a new teaching lab, advised senior design teams and founded a student organization.

Her deep commitment to education extends beyond the classroom through STEM outreach, research camps and undergraduate research mentoring programs. She has guided approximately 50 undergraduate and high school students, many of whom earned prestigious honors such as the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship and American Society of Mechanical Engineers awards.

Hassanipour consistently bridges academics with real-world applications, connecting students to industry challenges and research opportunities. Her work has elevated mechanical engineering education at UT Dallas and inspired countless students to pursue and excel in STEM fields.

Honorable Mention: Dr. Ravi Prakash, Professor, Computer Science, ECS

Dr. Christian Rivera was instrumental in developing the Department of Bioengineering’s junior design sequence and microfluidics lab course. He also teaches statics, biomechanics and fluid mechanics courses. Rivera is passionate about engineering education, where he researches techniques for enhancing the design experiences of undergraduate students.

Honorable Mention: Dr. Mark McKinney, Associate Professor of Instruction, Harry W. Bass Jr. School of Arts, Humanities, and Technology (BAHT)

Dr. Sonia Leach teaches both traditional and executive education students in statistics, operations management and supply chain management. Prior to joining UTD in 2012, Leach served for 20 years as an active-duty officer in the U.S. Air Force. Her professional experience enables her to blend practical application with academic rigor in her instruction of both MBA and Master of Science students. In addition to teaching over 500 students each year, Leach directs a program through which MBA and MS Supply Chain Management students are mentored by industry professionals to assist their transition from student to working professional.

Honorable Mention: Dr. Rym Zalila-Wenkstern, Professor, Computer Science, ECS

Dr. Kristin N. Riley teaches courses on writing and American 20th-century literature. In 2018, she helped to develop the first hybrid sections of RHET 1302 and has been instrumental in redesigning the format of Writing in Literary Studies. In addition to creating new LIT courses and innovative writing assignments, Riley regularly supervises capstone projects.

A compassionate teacher committed to excellence and growth, she completed the CTL Reflective Teaching Seminar (2019) and the Association of College and University Educators Certificate in Effective College Instruction (2021). She also received UTD’s Victor Worsfold Outstanding Teaching Award (2023).

Rita Egeland brings over two decades of experience as a chief marketing officer and executive team member for multibillion-dollar retailers. Recognized for driving profitable growth, her innovative programs have earned accolades from The Wall Street Journal, Advertising Age and the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.

With a focus on ensuring future marketers continue to bring material value to their organizations, Egeland began her teaching career at UT Dallas in fall 2015. She has focused on the practical application of core marketing principles and the integration of emerging technologies employed by today’s marketers. Egeland also emphasizes cross-functional collaboration, the strategic value of networking and actionable career guidance to equip students for real-world success.

Hailey King earned her Bachelor of Science degree in psychology from Oklahoma State University and her Master of Education degree in higher education administration from the University of Houston. She has been the academic advisor for the UTeach Dallas program since January 2011. Prior to coming to UT Dallas, King served as an academic advisor at the University of Houston and at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

King is passionate about working with students and helping them discover their strengths and reach their goals. She finds it very rewarding to see a student’s growth from orientation through graduation.

Dr. Janelle Gray has taught Rhetoric, World Literature, and her newly designed Creative Writing workshop class, Crafting Through Culture. Gray has served on the Literature Program’s Core Writing Committee, working alongside senior faculty to maintain relevant and appropriate standards and instruction for first-year writing. She is also the co-editor of UT Dallas’ newly adopted Rhetoric II textbook, Research and Argumentation within Rhetorical Foundations. Furthermore, she has been an invited speaker for Rhetoric Program and Bass School TA orientations.

Gray is a practicing artist in the Dallas theater and arts community and has been an invited speaker for Intro to Theater classes and at UT Dallas Theatre Program talkbacks and UT Dallas Choir events, offering students advice about the industry and improving their craft, tips for getting started and staying motivated, and social concerns that can be addressed through arts. In addition to teaching, she recently defended her doctoral dissertation titled “Staging Ancestry: Black Theater Aesthetics.”

Honorable Mentions: Mazyar Mahan, BAHT, and Sophia De Aquino Veras, NSM

Dr. Vijay Mookerjee conducts research across a wide range of areas, including digital advertising, cloud computing, financial technology, optimal software development methodologies and the economics of information systems.

He is a Fellow of the INFORMS Information Systems Society, a distinction that recognizes his substantial scholarly contributions and leadership within the academic community. Mookerjee serves as a departmental editor for the Production and Operations Management Journal, overseeing research in disruptive technologies and operations management. He also serves as co-editor-in-chief of the journal Information Technology and Management. In addition, he co-directs both the Jindal School’s Doctor of Business Administration Program and the Center for the Management of Financial and Digital Assets.

Mookerjee’s mentoring philosophy is shaped by a family legacy of dedication to education, which has instilled in him a deep appreciation for the transformative role of mentorship in developing future scholars and professionals. He attributes much of his success to the exceptional doctoral students he has had the privilege to mentor, as well as to the uniquely collaborative and intellectually vibrant environment at the Jindal School.

A national leader in biomedical imaging and image-guided interventions, Dr. Baowei Fei has advanced the development and clinical translation of imaging technologies to improve the detection, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases, including cancer.

Fei also holds a joint appointment as professor of radiology at UT Southwestern Medical Center and serves as director of the Center for Imaging and Surgical Innovation.

Dr. Justin Ruths’ research interests are ensuring that automated systems do what they should do even in the context of failures and attacks. He is honored to receive this award and grateful to be working at a university where true time and effort are dedicated to helping new faculty.

A singer, conductor, director, producer and academic researcher, Dr. Kathryn Evans has performed and directed music composed from 1200 to contemporary times. She currently teaches music history and vocal instruction and leads the project Self-Care Management Patients with Head and Neck Cancer — an online course (in conjunction with UT Southwestern). She is the founder and executive director of the Texas Annual Guitar Competition and Festival.

Known for her passion for supporting neurodivergent students, Dr. Maria Hasenhuttl has led CTL workshops, organized panels for Neurodiversity Week and actively engages in faculty development programs.

Hasenhuttl served as a mentor in the Short-term Working Group program and created a Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) experience for her organizational behavior students with the University of Marburg in Germany. She collaborates widely across disciplines and is committed to continuous learning through programs like the Association of College and University Educators. Her energy and dedication have made a lasting impact on CTL and the broader faculty community.

Calendar

Thursday, May 1
CTL & Faculty Mentoring Social, 4 to 6 p.m., Northside Drafthouse & Eatery — Join the center for Teaching and Learning and the Provost’s Faculty Success Program for the Faculty End of Semester Social. Enjoy appetizers and a beverage ticket while connecting with colleagues. Open to UTD faculty only. RSVP for the social

Friday, May 9
AI for Boosting Professional Influence, 1:30 to 3 p.m., CTL Conference Room (MC 2.404) — Join us for an interactive workshop on enhancing your academic digital identity through LinkedIn and AI tools. Learn how to share research, grow your network, and streamline communication with practical, research-backed strategies — no LinkedIn profile required to attend. RSVP by May 2

 

The University of Texas at Dallas

800 W. Campbell Road, Richardson, Texas 75080-3021
972-883-2111

view in browser

To unsubscribe from this list, click here.