To recognize exceptional teaching in 2020, the Holling Family Award Program provides up to four awards in each category: Senior Faculty Teaching Award, Junior Faculty Teaching Award, and Teaching Assistant Award.

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln has a rich heritage of teaching excellence. The Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources (IANR) and the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture (NCTA) not only share this reputation but are regarded as leaders among their peers. Both are proud to claim some of the leading teachers and the most innovative programs in the University of Nebraska System.

IANR and NCTA are proud of their reputation for teaching excellence, and are continually striving to improve their quality. Preparing individuals in the agricultural sciences and natural resources for the 21st century requires continuous academic and extension education program revitalization, educational material development and educational programming enhancement and innovation. The Holling Family Award Program for Teaching Excellence in Agriculture and Natural Resources was established to celebrate imaginative educational programming and innovations (presentation and delivery) in IANR or NCTA educational programs. Teaching includes college campus, extended campus, or community. This award program recognizes the full continuum of educational programming from college campus to youth, adult and community programming.

The Holling Family Award Program for Teaching Excellence was made possible by a gift from the Holling family to honor their pioneer parents. John Holling was a 1912 electrical engineering graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and his brother, Gustave Holling, attended the College of Agriculture before farming the family’s land in the Wood River Area.

Award Categories & Eligibility

1. Up to four (4) Senior Faculty Teaching Awards of approximately $5,000 each. Individuals within the University of Nebraska System receiving a Holling award from any college may be nominated for a second award after eight (8) years have elapsed.
2. Up to four (4) Junior Faculty Teaching Awards of approximately $3,000 each. “Junior Faculty” is defined as those individuals having six (6) years or less employment in a faculty position. A faculty member may receive this award only once.
3. Up to four (4) Teaching Assistant Awards of approximately $1,000 each. A recipient of this award is not eligible to be nominated a second time.

The Holling Family Fund for distinguished teaching is to recognize outstanding contributions by faculty and teaching assistants in the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources (CASNR), Extension (only faculty in agriculture and natural resources subject areas), and the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture (NCTA). Faculty recipients must hold faculty appointments in CASNR, Extension or NCTA.

Nominations

Nominations may be made by peers and/or administrators who feel that a particular individual effort is deserving of special recognition. All nominations should be submitted through the appropriate IANR Head or Director to the cognizant Dean, or through the appropriate NCTA Program Director to the NCTA Dean. The nomination will be submitted by the Dean to the Holling Family Award Program for Teaching Excellence Selection Committee (103 Agricultural Hall, East Campus 0702). After reviewing all initial nominations, the selection committee may request additional information concerning those nominees it wishes to consider further.

The Selection Committee

A selection committee consisting of an Assistant/Associate CASNR Dean (who also serves as chair of the selection committee), an Assistant/Associate Extension Dean, an Assistant/Associate NCTA Dean, a representative selected by the CASNR Faculty Advisory Council, and a representative selected by the Extension Advisory Committee will review nominations. The committee will make recommendations to the CASNR Dean, the Extension Dean and the NCTA Dean. The recipients will be recognized at the awards ceremony held in the spring on the Lincoln campus.

Selection Criteria

The committee will consider the following criteria in making their rankings of the faculty nominations:

• Identification of innovative and effective teaching;
• Description of goals, target audience, estimated numbers involved, other colleagues involved, and time line;
• Outcomes of teaching activity on the learners, types of learner activities utilized (e.g., active learning; cooperative or collaborative learning; interactive learning using technology; and, distance learning processes);
• Letters of endorsement or support that indicate faculty assessment of innovation.

The committee will consider the following criteria for teaching assistant nominations:

• Successful performance in the classroom with preference given to those introducing imaginative and/or innovative instructional practices into the classroom or laboratory;
• Enthusiasm and commitment to teaching;
• Satisfactory progress towards a degree;
• Letter(s) of support from their graduate adviser and students in the classroom.

Past Senior Faculty Awardees

Year	Recipient	Department
2020	Joseph Dauer	School of Natural Resources
2020	Steven Jones	Animal Science
2019	Karin van Dijik	Biochemistry
2019	Doug Smith	NCTA
2019	Suat Irmak	Biological Systems Engineering
2018	Lisa Pennisi	School of Natural Resources
2018	Fabio Mattos	Agricultural Economics
2018	John Hay	Biological Systems Engineering
2017	Dennis Ferraro	School of Natural Resources
2017	Roger Hoy	Biological Systems Engineering
2017	Larkin Powell	School of Natural Resources
2016	Lisa Karr-Lilienthal	Animal Science
2016	Martha Mamo	Agronomy and Horticulture
2016	Bradford Ramsdale	Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture
2016	Brandy VanDeWalle	Southeast Research and Extension Center
2015	Dann Husmann	Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication
2015	Brad Lubben	Agricultural Economics
2015	David Wedin	School of Natural Resources
2014	Sarah Browning	Extension
2014	Deana Namuth-Covert	Agronomy and Horticulture
2014	Mark Pegg	School of Natural Resources
2014	Rick Rasby	Animal Science
2013	Joseph Barycki	Biochemistry
2013	Patricia Freeman	School of Natural Resources
2013	Timothy Lemmons	Extension
2013	Sheila Purdum	Animal Science
2012	Erin Blankenship	Statistics
2012	Charles Burr	Extension
2012	Randy Pryor	Extension
2012	Jerry Volesky	Extension
2011	Kathleen Anderson	Animal Science
2011	Scott Hygnstrom	School of Natural Resources
2011	Ellen Paparozzi	Agronomy and Horticulture
2011	Brett White	Animal Science
2010	Susan Cuppett	Food Science and Technology
2010	Ron Hanson	Agricultural Economics
2009	John Foster	Entomology
2009	Paul Hay	Extension
2009	Phillip Miller	Animal Science
2009	Connie Reimers-Hild	Extension
2008	James Brandle	School of Natural Resources
2008	Tom Dorn	Extension
2008	Richard Sutton	Agronomy and Horticulture
2008	Gary Zoubek	Extension
2007	Terry Hejny	Nebraska LEAD
2007	Barbara Ogg	Extension
2007	Madhavan Soundararajan	Biochemistry
2007	David Varner	Extension
2006	Dennis Burson	Animal Science
2006	Andrew Christiansen	Extension
2006	Alexander Martin	Agronomy and Horticulture
2006	Sharon Skipton	Extension
2005	Beth Birnstihl	Extension
2005	Judy Bowmaster-Cole	Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture
2005	Merlyn Nielsen	Animal Science
2005	David Smith	School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences
2004	Robert Klein	Extension
2004	John Markwell	Biochemistry
2004	Stephen Mason	Agronomy and Horticulture
2004	Ed Peters	School of Natural Resources
2003	Steve Jones	Animal Science
2003	Don Lee	Agronomy and Horticulture
2003	Jack Schinstock	Biological Systems Engineering
2003	Del VanDerWerff	Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture
2002	James Gosey	Animal Science
2002	Lowell Moser	Agronomy and Horticulture
2002	James Partridge	Plant Pathology
2002	John Rupnow	Food Science and Technology
2001	Mary Beck	Animal Science
2001	Del Hemsath	Extension
2001	Robert Hutkins	Food Science and Technology
2001	Steve Rodie	Agronomy and Horticulture
2000	Don Adams	Animal Science
2000	Vicki Greve	Extension
2000	Ron Hanson	Agricultural Economics
2000	Gerald Sundquist	Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture
1999	Dean Eisenhauer	Biological Systems Engineering
1999	Michael Kocher	Biological Systems Engineering
1999	Keith Glewen	Extension
1999	Terri Jo Bek	Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture
1998	Lloyd Bell	Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication
1998	Dennis Brink	Animal Science
1998	Leon Higley	Entomology
1998	Terry Klopfenstein	Animal Science

Past Junior Faculty Awardees

Year	Recipient	Department
2020	Renee McFee	School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
2020	Eric North	School of Natural Resources
2020	Jamilynn Poletto	School of Natural Resources
2020	Laura Thompson	Extension Education
2019	Sam Wortman	Agronomy and Horticulture
2019	Rebecca Roston	Biochemistry
2019	Daran Rudnick	Biological Systems Engineering
2018	Nicole Iverson	Biological Systems Engineering
2018	Jaime Loizzo	Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication
2018	Jeffrey Peterson	Agricultural Economics
2018	Santosh Pitia	Biological Systems Engineering
2017	Jenny Dauer	School of Natural Resources
2017	Leah Sandell	Agronomy & Horticulture
2016	Jennifer Keshwani	Biological Systems Engineering
2016	L.H. McElravy	Agricultural Leadership, Education & Communication
2015	Joe Luck	Biological Systems
2015	Amy Burgin	School of Natural Resources
2014	Deepak Keshwani	Biological Systems Engineering
2014	Ashley Hall	Entomology
2013	Tom Weissling	Entomology
2013	Jennifer Green	Statistics
2012	Matthew Spangler	Animal Science
2012	Lindsay Chichester	Extension
2011	Gina Matkin	Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication
2011	Jennifer Wood	Animal Science
2010	David Carter	Entomology
2010	Jason Ellis	Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication
2010	Dennis Ferraro	School of Natural Resources
2010	Lisa Karr-Lilienthal	Animal Science
2009	Cheryl Bailey	Biochemistry
2009	Cory Reng	Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture
2008	Jennifer Rees	Extension
2007	Suat Irmak	Biological Systems Engineering
2007	Darrell Mark	Agricultural Economics
2006	Loren Giesler	Entomology
2006	Kim Todd	Agronomy and Horticulture
2005	Clyde Cranwell	Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture
2005	Brett White	Animal Science
2004	Dann Husmann	Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication
2004	Larkin Powell	School of Natural Resources
2003	Tiffany Heng-Moss	Entomology
2003	Jess Miner	Animal Science
2002	John Barbuto	Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication
2002	James Stack	Plant Pathology
2001	Brian Benham	Extension
2001	Rosemarie Nold	Animal Science
2000	James King	Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication
1999	Rhae Drijber	Agronomy and Horticulture
1999	James Kennedy	Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture
1998	Susan Fritz	Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication
1998	Sheila Kepler	Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication
1998	Walter Schacht	Agronomy and Horticulture

Past Teaching Assistant Awardees

Year	Recipient	Department
2020	Joslyn Beard	Animal Science
2020	Tasha King	Animal Science
2020	James Lee	ALEC
2020	Salvador Ramirez	Agronomy & Horticulture
2019	Katie Bidne	Animal Science
2019	Adam Striegel	Agronomy and Horticulture
2019	Kelly Willemssens	School of Natural Resources
2019	Jason Headrick	Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication
2018	Tiffani Luethke	Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication
2018	Kate McCain	Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication
2018	Aaron Shropshire	Agronomy & Horticulture
2017	Braymond Adams	School of Natural Resources
2016	Katherine I. Domenech-Perez	Animal Science
2016	Nancy Qwynne Lackey	School of Natural Resources
2015	Jeff Hartman
2015	Katherine Lawry
2014	Elizabeth Claassen
2014	L.J. McElravy
2013	Shannon Moncure
2012	Kim Cluff
2012	Pamela Anderson Fellers
2011	Benjamin Arentsen
2011	Andrew Brueggeman
2010	Heath Harding
2010	John Quinn
2009	Joana Story
2009	Jeremy Wagnitz
2008	Tierney Brosius
2008	Joel Lechner
2007	Sara Daubert
2006	Timothy Huntington
2006	Corey Searle
2005	Carmen Gherasim
2005	Jennifer Moss
2004	James MacDonald
2004	Jeremy Martin
2003	Kevin Delaney
2003	Douglas Golick
2002	Cristina Furdui
2002	Horatiu Olteanu
2001	Mark Allan
2000	Michael Burton
2000	Jolene Schauer
1999	Todd Campbell
1999	Galen Erickon
1998	John Ortman