Bradley honors faculty, staff and alumni

Peoria, Illinois . . . October 3, 2002 . . . Members of the Bradley University community were recognized for achievements in scholarship, teaching, and service today during the 106th Founder's Day convocation held on campus. The awards and the recipients follow.

Putnam Award for Excellence in Teaching

Recognition of excellence in teaching became a tradition at Bradley in 1957 when Charles A. Putnam established this prestigious award. That tradition continues with the naming of the 2002 Putnam Award recipient.

Dr. Timothy Conley

Dr. Timothy Conley, Associate Professor of English, was recognized for his openness to new ideas and change in his pedagogical approaches, which engage student participation and give them a responsibility in the learning process. He has received three Fulbright Teaching Fellowships and has taught at the University of Vienna twice.

Dr. Conley received his bachelorÕs degree from St. Louis University, and his master of arts and doctorate in English from The Pennsylvania State University. He served as BradleyÕs Director of Teaching Excellence Programs and co-director of the Office for Teaching Excellence and Faculty Development from 1992 to 1997. He currently serves as chair of the American Studies Committee and Director of the American Studies Minor.

Caterpillar New Faculty Achievement Awards for Scholarship

The Caterpillar New Faculty Achievement Awards are designed to recognize and reward excellence in scholarship and teaching. Nominees must hold a full-time, tenure-track teaching appointment, but not yet have attained tenure status.

Dr. Larry Xue

Dr. Larry Xue, assistant professor of mathematics, has authored or co-authored and had published a total of twenty-six articles in national and international refereed journals since coming to Bradley in 1997. Coming to Bradley with a background in both pure and applied mathematics, Dr. Xue has published papers in statistics and has developed an interest in the Galois Theory for rings, an important branch in algebra, and has received international recognition for his research. He received his bachelor and masterÕs degree from Shandong University in China and his doctorate from University of Pittsburgh. Prior to coming to Bradley he taught at Ohio State University at Newark.

Dr. Jack Feng

Dr. Jack Feng, associate professor of industrial and manufacturing engineering, began his Bradley career in 1998 and has succeeded in attracting more than $200,000 in funding for his research and has been a significant contributor to two other grants that totaled more than $400,000. His research interests span a wide spectrum of industrial and manufacturing areas including quality control, design, scheduling, tolerance analysis, rapid prototyping, reverse engineering, as well as his recent venture in Internet and data mining and has led to a number of publications in leading journals and conference proceedings. He is also co-author of a book, Electro-mechanical Engineering, and co-translator of another, 21st Century Manufacturing. Dr. Feng received his bachelor and masterÕs degree in mechanical engineering from Wuhan University of Technology on Wuhan, China, and his masterÕs and Ph.D. in industrial engineering from The University of Iowa.

Caterpillar Inc. New Faculty Achievement Award for Teaching

Gary Will

Mr. Gary Will, assistant professor of art, is co-author of BradleyÕs new graphic design program, which involved the creation of a new syllabus for each section. He also delivers graphic design summer classes and introduced a new topics class called "Creative Advertising." He is a native of England, having attended college at Leeds Metropolitan University where he received a masterÕs degree in graphic arts and design. Prior to coming to Bradley in 1999, he taught at Doncaster College in South Yorkshire, England where he served as the program co-coordinator of graphic design.

Dr. Lizabeth Crawford

Dr. Lizabeth Crawford, assistant professor of sociology, teaches an introductory course in sociology as well as two upper level classes. In addition she supervises the research projects of students enrolled in independent study, internships and field studies. She received her bachelor of arts degree in sociology from Coe College and her masterÕs and Ph.D. degrees in Sociology from Indiana University. Following her first year of teaching at Bradley, she was awarded the First Year Faculty Award for Teaching.

Francis C. Mergen Award

Dr. Francesca A. Armmer, chairperson, Department of Nursing, and associate professor of nursing, and Dr. Aaron B. Buchko, associate professor of management, were recognized with the Francis C. Mergen Award during the Founder's Day convocation at Bradley University today. The award was created in 1973 in memory of Dr. Mergen, who was director of the department of industrial engineering, and is given to a Bradley faculty or staff member who has distinguished herself or himself in the area of public service.

Dr. Francesca A. Armmer is involved in community service initiatives through her church, sorority, the American Red Cross, the Junior League, the Tri-County (Peoria) Urban League, Peoria Public School District 150 Health Academy, Partnership for Healthy Communities Steering Committee, The Heritage Ensemble, and a number of other organizations.

She has been a member of Delta Sigma Theta sorority for 26 years and has served the chapter by registering voters and conducting voter education seminars in high schools, worked at annual health fairs and participated in the sorority's breast cancer awareness program and helped facilitate their clinical depression program.

Dr. Armmer received the College of Education and Health Sciences Center for Research and Service Annual Award for Outstanding Performance in the area of Professional Service in 1995 and the Mother M. Frances Krasse Professions Award presented at the YWCA Leader Luncheon in 2000.

Dr. Aaron A. Buchko serves on a number of non-profit boards and provides strategic planning advice to a number of them. Groups such as Peoria Area Retarded Citizens, Peoria Civic Center, Peoria Symphony, The Cancer Center for Healthy Living, The Salvation Army, and Counseling and Family Services have all benefited from his contributions and continue to do so.

Dr. Buchko has served as an advisory board member for The Salvation Army since 1997, and was involved in the development of a strategic plan for The Salvation Army Tri-County area and was instrumental in launching the largest capital campaign ever embarked by The Salvation Army in Peoria. He served on the steering committee of the Peoria 2020 citywide planning task force, has assisted the United Way in a variety of public issues, and serves on the board of Concordia Lutheran School.