Department of Biosystems Engineering earns award for excellence in writing across the curriculum

The University Writing Committee, or UWC, has awarded the Department of Biosystems Engineering with the 2023 Award for Excellence in Writing Across the Curriculum.

This award honors departments whose faculty have demonstrated sustained and successful efforts to integrate evidence-based pedagogical practices across an undergraduate major. The Office of University Writing and the UWC recognized Oladiran Fasina, department head, as well as faculty members Jon Davis and Mark Dougherty, at the annual University Writing Awards Luncheon on May 4.

The UWC selected the department because its efforts to integrate meaningful writing have spanned a decade. The department has used ePortfolios to help students integrate their learning and communicate the value of a degree in biosystems engineering for prospective employers who may be unfamiliar with the field.

New faculty have also been brought into the fold, for instance during a recent Writing Across the Curriculum Academy devoted to high-impact writing instruction in the department’s new major in biological and agricultural technology management. Faculty’s evidence-based practices for teaching with writing and ePortfolios have also formed the basis of several prestigious national grants, including multiple with the National Science Foundation.

For their efforts, the department will receive $20,000 to support writing-focused guest speakers, conference attendance or a research project.