2022 STAR Educator Recipient: Pamela Larsen, PhD
Pamela Larsen, PhD
Associate Professor
Department of Cell Systems & Anatomy
Nomination Submission:
I am honored to nominate Dr. Pam Larsen based on her exceptional contributions to CSAT6072, a course designed to provide our Masters students the opportunity to hone their scientific speaking skills. I recruited Dr. Larsen and we have been teaching colleagues for 5 years; it was one of the smartest things I’ve ever done. Pam is a superb teacher; her enthusiasm is contagious.
Moreover, her expertise is broad (from anatomy to animal models, to development, to molecular techniques, etc.)! Importantly, she has a knack for phrasing her criticisms of the students’ presentations in a positive and constructive manner. Last year, Pam agreed to become Course Director just as the pandemic hit; it was very fortuitous as Pam’s organizational skills are far superior to mine. She facilitated a smooth transition to remote learning and even brought us into the 21st century, using Canvas in very creative ways. I was particularly impressed with her professional, but caring, approach to student issues, from missed classes, to troublesome research mentors, to scheduling around courses and even a student’s pregnancy.
Pam is an outstanding course director. Even more impressive, she did so on top of an already heavy teaching/directing load [contributions to 5 different dental courses and 2 graduate courses (Basic Histology and Molecular Biology)]. In addition, she had accepted directorship of INTD5035 and according to Dr. Kay Oyajobi did an equally wonderful job there; to quote ““Last fall (in the middle of COVID pandemic), Pam stepped up and took on directorship of UTeach, a workshop/ course for postdocs, advanced graduate students and junior faculty. Even though this was at very short notice following retirement of the previous director, Pam organized and ran the course smoothly and effectively” “evaluations from participants were very complimentary.” Dr. Larsen is highly deserving of a Star of Education award.