Following are excepts from the May 1997 issue of Kiosk and from the awards program:

The award reflects excellence in teaching, research, and creative activities; advising; academic program development; and educational leadership. Svedarsky was among eight U of M faculty honored on Monday, April 28, 1997 at a Reception at the Ted Mann Concert Hall in Minneapolis, MN. The awards are named for the late Horace T. Morse, first dean of General College (1934-60) and a national leader in the field of undergraduate education. Recipients receive a crystalline-like acrylic sculpture, a certificate of recognition from their colleges, and a $1,500 salary augmentation per year during their service as University of Minnesota faculty. In addition, $2,500 is given to the recipients' respective departments for three consecutive years.

Other 1996-1997 honorees include:
E. Calvin Alexander, Jr. - Professor, Geology and Geophysics
John S. Anderson - Professor, Biochemistry
Russell F. Bey - Associate Professor, Veterinary PathoBiology
Kenneth J. Heller - Professor, Physics
Jacquelyn N. Zita - Associate Professor, Women's Studies
Engin A. Sungur - Associate Professor, Science and Mathematics (U of M, Morris)
Eileen M. Zeitz - Professor, Foreign Languages and Literatures (U of M, Duluth)

In the classroom and in the field, W. Daniel Svedarsky's high-energy, interactive teaching style, balanced by his modesty and warmth, sets him apart as an outstanding educator. He is routinely found perfecting class material and designing exercises long after his students and colleagues have called it a day.

An unabashed proponent of lifelong learning, Svedarsky's broad expertise in the field of natural resources is reflected in his varied and demanding teaching load, as well as in his challenging course work. His passion for conservation ignites his passion to teach. His students learn by being immersed in the outdoors, where they identify soils, plants, and animals, and learn to read the landscape. And they're all exposed to the research process by collecting, summarizing, and reporting field data, and then applying their observations to other situations. In the process, they learn from a teacher who motivates them "to work very hard and enjoy every minute of the hard work," says one former student.

His concern for students goes beyond the classroom. Says one colleague who counsels students, Svedarsky is a model of integrity, humanity, and quiet resolve, and an instructor who gives his students "roots and wings"--the ability to exercise principles and values, and the willingness to accept challenges.

Svedarsky says he is motivated in his teaching by an old adage: "For in the end we will conserve what we love, will love only what we understand, and we will understand only what we are taught."

Svedarsky has been the principal architect of the four-year academic curriculum for Crookston's major in environmental and natural resources management. Today the natural resources program is among the strongest on campus. In addition to his distinguished work in the development of field laboratory resources and prairie management and restoration, Svedarsky's passion for helping others understand conservation issues extends outside the classroom as well, where he has earned a national reputation as a leader in conservation initiatives. His work has been recognized by his peers with several prestigious awards including an honorary lifetime membership in the Nature Conservancy.

May 2, 1997

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