Parents Association honors Amy Ostrom as Professor of the Year

<p>After a record-breaking 43 submissions for this year’s Professor of the Year program, the votes are in: Three-time nominee Amy Ostrom, an ASU marketing professor with the W. P. Carey School of Business since 1996, was named 2007 Professor of the Year April 16 at a special recognition event at Old Main on the Tempe campus.</p><separator></separator><p>With nearly double the number of nominees this year, a selection committee of ASU Parents Association board members, ASU Parents Association professors and students worked through the submissions for three weeks. Ostrom stood out among her peers with demonstrated exceptional service to the university, the business school and marketing department, as well as excellence in the professional arena.</p><separator></separator><table border="0" cellpadding="5" width="104" align="right"> <tbody><tr valign="top"> <td width="94"><p><img src="http://www.asu.edu/news/stories/200704/images/20070417_poy_full.jpg&quot; alt width="300" height="228"></p><separator></separator><p class="featureblurb">Andrew Smith, the 2006 Professor of the Year, applauds 2007 winner Amy Ostrom as she receives her award.</p><separator></separator></td> </tr> </tbody></table> <p>“Everyone was so good this year, but we really were looking for a person who was a teacher and a scholar,” says Andrew Smith, the 2006 Professor of the Year and co-chair of the 2007 selection committee. “Amy is both, and she conveys real-world solutions to her students. I know she will have a lot of fun with this award.”</p><separator></separator><p>Along with the lifelong distinction as an ASU Parents Association professor, Ostrom received a $20,000 award consisting of $10,000 cash and a $10,000 stipend ($5,000 per academic year) to fund an undergraduate student research assistant. Additionally, Ostrom is now recognized as a fellow in the ASU Distinguished Teaching Academy.</p><separator></separator><p>“This is slightly surreal for me,” Ostrom said after being announced the 2007 Professor of the Year. “On campus, I come across many of the professors who were nominated tonight, and I am always learning from them. Because I am continually learning, I guess I never thought I would be at a point in my career where I could be honored in this way among all these wonderful teachers. I am excited for the possibilities that this award brings, and my students will definitely play a role in helping me decide what to do next.”</p><separator></separator><p>Ostrom’s résumé includes a long list of university-based committee participation, including many chair positions, student marketing association advisement and curriculum construction. She also has served in numerous roles with the American Marketing Association and on the editorial review board for several publications. In 2004, Ostrom was named Arizona Professor of the Year by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement for Teaching. She is popular among students and faculty alike.</p><separator></separator><p>“Amy’s teaching is absolutely remarkable,” says Michael Mokwa, the W. P. Carey School of Business’ Marketing Department chairman, who nominated Ostrom. “She has a very thoughtful teaching orientation and relentless energy working with students. She creates an environment in and around the classroom that promotes learning at the highest levels. Amy is innovative and practical, always at the cutting edge blending theory and practice.”</p><separator></separator><p>In addition to Ostrom’s honor, the selection committee chose to designate 11 nominees for special recognition for their teaching and scholarship, each of whom received a $1,000 cash award. This year’s special recognition awardees were James Blasingame Jr., Allan DeSerpa, Nancy Haas, Douglas Kenrick, Mark Lussier, José Náñez Sr., Paul Privateer, Danko Šipka, Rose Weitz, Matthew Whitaker and Neal Woodbury. Read excerpts from the nomiation letters about the special recognition awardees <a href="http://www.asu.edu/news/stories/200704/20070417_profofyear.htm">here</a… other nominees this year also set a high precedent for teaching at ASU and were applauded for their efforts at the event, as well. These nominees were: Madelaine Adelman, Prasad Boradkar, David Capco, Richard Creath, Sharon Crowley, Peter de Marneffe, Miriam Fendius Elman, Gerald Farin, David William Foster, Karen Gerdes, Gitta Honegger, Joochul Kim, Pat Lauderdale, Richard Lebed, Mark R. Manfredo, Katherine McLin, Michael Mitchell, Timothy Newman, David Pijawka, William Reber, Nancy Rodriguez, Mary Romero, Joseph Russomanno, Dieter Schroder, Robert Spring, F. Miguel Valenti, Elly van Gelderen, Brent Vernon, Emil Volek and Eric Wertheimer.</p><separator></separator><p>The ASU Parents Association Professor of the Year award was given for the first time in 1994. Thanks to the continued generosity of ASU families and the participation of ASU students, faculty and staff, the ASU Parents Association is able to award this prestigious honor on an annual basis.</p>