UMBC Presidential Faculty & Staff Awards Ceremony

Wednesday, April 12, 2006
University Center Ballroom
12-1 p.m.
(Light refreshments served at 11:30 a.m.)

Each year, the UMBC community comes together to celebrate the accomplishments of our outstanding faculty and staff. This year we honor:

Phillip G. Sokolove, Professor of Biological Sciences
Presidential Teaching Professor, 2006-09

Joel F. Liebman, Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Presidential Research Professor, 2006-09

Joe E. Hill, Assistant Director of Operations and Maintenance,
Facilities Management
Presidential Distinguished Staff Award, Professional Staff, 2006-07

James Peach, Supervisor, Plumbing Shop, Facilities Management
Presidential Distinguished Staff Award, Classified Staff, 2006-07

Jodi Kelber-Kaye, Visiting Assistant Professor of Women’s Studies
President’s Commission for Women Achievement Award, 2006-07

Julia M. Ross, Associate Professor of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering
Regents’ Faculty Award for Excellence for Collaboration in Public Service

Taryn M. Bayles, Professor of the Practice of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering
Regents’ Faculty Award for Excellence for Collaboration in Public Service

In addition, the UMBC 40th anniversary logo will be unveiled and the schedule of events will be announced.

In preparation for our 40th celebration, members of the UMBC community are invited to bring UMBC memorabilia to highlight on a UMBC online timeline. You may bring your items to the ceremony for photographing or contact elewis@umbc.edu for more information.

View Previous Presidential Faculty and Staff Award Recipients
2003      2004

 
Phillip G. Sokolove, Professor of Biological Sciences
Presidential Teaching Professor, 2006-09

Phillip G. Sokolove, a professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, has contributed significantly to improving the quality of teaching and learning at UMBC. In order to increase student participation, Sokolove implemented widely-recommended "active learning” methods in his large-enrollment (280+ students) introductory biology classes. He is the first UMBC faculty member to introduce the use of wireless microphones in large classrooms and one of the first two faculty members at UMBC to use an electronic "clicker" system that allows students to respond anonymously to questions asked during lectures to assess their understanding of key concepts. Sokolove obtained an undergraduate degree in physics from the University of California, Berkeley, received a doctorate in biophysics from Harvard University and did his postdoctoral training at Stanford University. He began his employment with UMBC in 1974.

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Joel F. Liebman, Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Presidential Research Professor, 2006-09

Joel F. Liebman, a professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, is well known for his excellence in organic, inorganic and physical chemistry research. Among his many research accomplishments, with over 100 peer coworkers from some 20 countries, Liebman has co-authored or co-edited over 380 publications. He also co-authored several chapters of the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology's Chemistry WebBook, the primary ongoing electronic database of chemical information. Due to the WebBook's significance, the European Union's Eurospec Program produced translations in Czech, French, Portuguese and Spanish. Liebman, a UMBC faculty member since 1972, received his bachelor's degree in chemistry from Brooklyn College in 1967 and earned his master's and doctorate in chemistry from Princeton University in 1968 and 1970 respectively.

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Joe E. Hill, Assistant Director of Operations and Maintenance,
Facilities Management
Presidential Distinguished Staff Award, Professional Staff, 2006-07

Joe E. Hill serves as assistant director of operations and maintenance in Facilities Management. He joined the UMBC community 34 years ago as a groundskeeper. Following an electrical apprenticeship and service as campus electrician and supervisor, Hill assumed leadership positions within Facilities Management, through extensive service on campus committees and in the UMBC and USM shared governance process. As a tireless advocate for staff, he served recently as president of the UMBC Professional Staff Senate and is currently chair of the Council of University System Staff.

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James Peach, Supervisor, Plumbing Shop, Facilities Management
Presidential Distinguished Staff Award, Classified Staff, 2006-07

James Peach is supervisor of the plumbing shop in Facilities Management, where he has distinguished himself by his exemplary leadership. In addition, throughout his eight years at UMBC, he has demonstrated an abiding commitment to helping students, faculty and staff by assuming such responsibilities as maintaining the swimming pools, mentoring employees, assisting other shops in facilities management, clearing snow, tackling asbestos abatement projects and helping students move into residence halls. In May 2006, Peach will graduate with honors from Mount St. Mary’s University with a bachelor’s degree in business administration.

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Jodi Kelber-Kaye, Visiting Assistant Professor of Women’s Studies
President’s Commission for Women Achievement Award, 2006-07

Jodi Kelber-Kaye is a visiting assistant professor in the Women's Studies Program and the acting director of Women Involved in Learning and Leadership (WILL), a diverse group of undergraduate women who are involved in a learning community that promotes academic excellence, leadership development and civic engagement. She also serves as the faculty advisor for WILL’s living and learning residential floor. In addition to teaching core women's studies courses, Kelber-Kaye, a faculty member since 2003, has developed and teaches Queer Representations in Film and Television, and Understanding AIDS, a course cross-listed with interdisciplinary studies. Kelber-Kaye received her Ph.D. in comparative cultural and literary studies from the University of Arizona in 2003.

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