Florida Senate - 2013 (NP) SR 1900
By Senator Legg
17-03529-13 20131900__
1 Senate Resolution
2 A resolution recognizing the Carnegie Foundation for
3 the Advancement of Teaching and the Council for
4 Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) 2012
5 United States Outstanding Doctoral and Research
6 Universities Professor of the Year, Autar Kaw, Ph.D.
7
8 WHEREAS, the United States Professors of the Year Awards
9 Program, administered by the Carnegie Foundation for the
10 Advancement of Teaching and the Council for Advancement and
11 Support of Education (CASE) each year salutes one professor
12 nationwide at a doctoral and research university and this award
13 is considered the nation’s highest such honor, and
14 WHEREAS, the criteria for this award includes demonstration
15 by the professor of extraordinary dedication to undergraduate
16 teaching, which is evidenced by excellence in the following
17 areas: impact on and involvement with undergraduate students;
18 scholarly approach to teaching and learning; contribution to
19 undergraduate education in the institution, community, and
20 profession; and support from colleagues and current and former
21 undergraduate students, and
22 WHEREAS, since the inception of the Professor of the Year
23 Awards Program in 1981 and until 2012, no doctoral and research
24 university professor in this state had been awarded this
25 distinction, and
26 WHEREAS, Autar Kaw, Ph.D. is a professor of mechanical
27 engineering at the University of South Florida, where he has
28 taught aspiring engineers for the past 25 years, and
29 WHEREAS, Dr. Kaw has dedicated his career to eliminating
30 one of the most significant obstacles to engineering students
31 through his innovative and forward-thinking approach to
32 education, his use of technology to expand learning
33 opportunities around the world, and his tireless pursuit of new
34 and engaging teaching methods, and
35 WHEREAS, Dr. Kaw has received numerous professional honors,
36 including being named a fellow in the American Society of
37 Mechanical Engineers and a member of the American Society of
38 Engineering Education, was awarded the National Outstanding
39 Teaching Medal from the American Society for Engineering
40 Education in 2011, and has authored four widely used textbooks,
41 and
42 WHEREAS, as a pioneer in Massive Open Online Courses
43 (MOOCs) and through his use of his Holistic Numerical Methods
44 Institute website, his blog, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube
45 video lectures, Dr. Kaw has become affectionately known among
46 engineering students around the world as the “Numerical Methods
47 Guy,” and
48 WHEREAS, on November 15, 2012, Dr. Kaw was named the 2012
49 United States Outstanding Doctoral and Research Universities
50 Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for the
51 Advancement of Teaching and CASE, and
52 WHEREAS, the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of
53 Teaching and CASE specifically recognized Dr. Kaw for his
54 innovative work in using new technologies and social media to
55 teach complex mathematical calculations to tens of thousands of
56 students around the world studying to be engineers, NOW,
57 THEREFORE,
58
59 Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of Florida:
60
61 That we recognize the Carnegie Foundation for the
62 Advancement of Teaching and the Council for Advancement and
63 Support of Education (CASE) 2012 United States Outstanding
64 Doctoral and Research Universities Professor of the Year, Autar
65 Kaw, Ph.D., and express appreciation for his service to this
66 state and for the recognition this award brings to the State of
67 Florida, the University of South Florida, and to the State
68 University System of Florida.