The Lee College of Engineering presented its 2014 Excellence in Teaching Awards to Tara Cavalline from the Department of Engineering Technology and Construction Management for undergraduate teaching and Matt Whelan from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering for graduate teaching.
Cavalline was honored as teacher who genuinely cares for her students and has an approachable demeanor. She makes every effort to know each of her students and their personalities.
In the nomination materials, Cavalline’s colleague John Hildreth noted, “Students want to take her classes because of the care and creativity she has devoted to teaching, and they seek her out as a senior design mentor because of the time and effort she dedicates to their success.”
Cavalline has taught, developed and made significant enhancements to more than 12 courses in the Department of Engineering Technology and Construction Management. She established the Women in Construction Club and is affiliated with the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC). She co-mentored a team of undergraduate students who won the American Concrete Institute (ACI)/American Society of Construction Contractors (ASCC) Concrete Construction Competition.
As the winner of the Graduate Teaching Award, Whelan was recognized as an educator who cares about the learning process of his students and creates an active learning environment. He has developed “workshop” sessions in which course problems are featured as real-world extensions of the course material. Students are encouraged to work together on these challenging problems.
For digital learners, Whelan piloted an effort to develop a supplemental digital instructional course package to reach the increasingly digital and visual style of learners. The workshops have energized the active learners and nurtured the teaching capabilities of his graduate teaching assistants.
In support of Whelan’s nomination, a student commented that his Advanced Structures class “is one of the harder classes I’ve taken, but it’s a great class.” Another student commented, “Dr. Whelan is a great professor and has a great technique for explaining the material.” They find him well organized, prepared and always available in his office to answer questions.
For the past three years, Whelan served as faculty advisor to the UNC Charlotte mixed graduate/undergraduate team competing in the ASCE/AISC Student Steel Bridge Competition, a featured event at the annual ASCE Carolina Conference.