The University of Alaska Southeast has announced its Faculty of Excellence for 2017.
Five professors and instructors were awarded, four from the Sitka campus and one from Juneau.
Dr. Brian Buma, Assistant Professor of Forest Ecosystem Ecology with the School of Arts and Sciences, was the lone Juneau campus honoree this year. Buma was awarded the Research Award.
Buma, who’s recent studies include cataloging die-off of yellow cedar trees, co-authored 10 papers this year in peer-reviewed journals. He was the first author in six of those.
Dr. Math Trafton took home the Service Award for his work as an Assistant Professor of English. Trafton was honored for his “quiet and competent” work on updating the Student Learning Outcomes for English and for his service work running writing workshops with Sitka’s youth.
Leslie Gordon won the Faculty Advising Award for her work as an Associate Professor with the Health Information Management department in Sitka. Gordon is known for keeping track of her students and designing her responsiveness to student needs.
This year’s Adjunct Instructor Award goes to Roberta “Roby” Littlefield, an instructor of Alaskan Language at the Sitka Campus. Littlefield has dedicated herself to instructing Tlingit at the UAS Sitka campus since 1993. She is known for helping translate the first children’s story written entirely in Tlingit, “The Story of the Town Bear and Forest Bear.”
Dr. Reid Brewer won the Teaching Award for his work as an Associate Professor of Fisheries Technology. The Fisheries Technology program at UAS has tripled in size in four years under Brewer’s oversight.
Faculty of Excellence 2017 winner Dr. Reid Brewer. (Photo courtesy UAS)
