SEILER RECEIVES INTERNATIONAL
AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING,
LEARNING & TECHNOLOGY
BLACKSBURG,
Va., April 11, 2004 – John Seiler
of Christiansburg, Va., the
Honorable and Mrs. S. H. Short
Professor of Forestry in Virginia
Tech’s College of Natural Resources,
was awarded the Ernest L. Boyer
International Award for Excellence
in Teaching, Learning and Technology.
This
international award given by
the Center for Advancement of
Teaching and Learning headquartered
at Florida Community College
at Jacksonville, Fla., recognizes
exceptional faculty achievements
in enhancing the learning process.
Seiler
was a nominee for the top award
after receiving the Award for
Innovative Excellence in Teaching,
Learning and Technology at the
Fifteenth International Conference
on College Teaching and Learning.
Seiler was chosen for the Boyer
International Award from 30
Innovative Award recipients.
Seiler
received the award on March
31 at a ceremony in Jacksonville,
Fla. He has received numerous
other top teaching awards from
Virginia Tech, the state of
Virginia, and national professional
societies.
Virginia
Tech nominated Seiler for his
innovative learning strategies
and use of technology. For teaching
his tree identification dendrology
class, Seiler and his colleagues
have developed a Macromedia
Authorware Database to help
students identify more than
470 tree species which includes
more than 9,500 color photographs.
The program presents information
to students in a tutorial format
in which they can work at their
own pace and revisit the information
until they have mastered it.
Studies have shown that Seiler’s
multimedia innovations help
students learn dendrology better
and quicker.
His
dendrology webpage (www.cnr.vt.edu/dendro)
is used each week by thousands
of students and professionals
from across the United States.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture
has a link to his site on its
well-known PLANTS database site.
Seiler’s
teaching and research focus
on environmental stress effects
on woody plant physiology.
Seiler
received two bachelor’s degrees
and a master’s degree from Pennsylvania
State University and a Ph.D.
from Virginia Tech.
The
College of Natural Resources
at Virginia Tech consistently
ranks among the top five programs
of its kind in the nation. Faculty
members stress both the technical
and human elements of natural
resources and instill in students
a sense of stewardship and land-use
ethics. Areas of studies include
environmental resource management,
fisheries and wildlife sciences,
forestry, geospatial and environmental
analysis, natural resource recreation,
urban forestry, wood science
and forest products, geography,
and international development.
Founded
in 1872 as a land-grant college,
Virginia Tech has grown to become
the largest university in the
Commonwealth of Virginia. Today,
Virginia Tech’s eight colleges
are dedicated to putting knowledge
to work through teaching, research,
and outreach activities and
to fulfilling its vision to
be among the top 30 research
universities in the nation.
At its 2,600-acre main campus
located in Blacksburg and other
campus centers in Northern Virginia,
Southwest Virginia, Hampton
Roads, Richmond, and Roanoke,
Virginia Tech enrolls more than
28,000 full- and part-time undergraduate
and graduate students from all
50 states and more than 100
countries in 180 academic degree
programs.
