May 7, 1999
The award is presented by the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. Maria Abatjoglou, South Charleston, W. Va., senior and president of the committee, said the selection this year was very hard because of the quality of the finalists.
"They're all spectacular people," she said. "They all care about helping students."
What set Friedman apart, she said, was the care he took to set up his class to meet the needs of his students.
"For his classes, he knows that 20 students would be the ideal number. But roughly a hundred students wanted to take the class. Rather than limit the enrollment, he set things up so that everyone would be able to take the class but still get the benefits of the smaller group discussions," Abatjoglou said. "He has a real passion for teaching."
"As a teacher," Friedman said, "I show students what they can accomplish through communication when they know, care and persist more than they had before. So I especially appreciate receiving this award from student athletes because they teach me, too. When I watch them perform, they teach us what each of us can do physically when we know, care and persist more. That these KU students excel in both academics and athletics impresses me greatly."
The award was announced by Del Shankel, professor emeritus of microbiology and former executive vice chancellor, acting chancellor, and fifteenth chancellor of the university.
"Each year I have been greatly honored by the excellence of the nominees," Shankel said. "I am honored again this year."
The other finalists for the award were Rene Diaz, professor of architecture and urban design, and Don Marquis, professor of philosophy.
Also recognized at the reception were 89 Academic All-Big 12 recipients, 11 Hale Achievement Center Academic Award winners, more than 200 fall 1998 Jayhawk Scholars, and five tutors. Athletic Department service awards went to Norma Henley, transcript credential evaluator in the Office of Admissions and Scholarships; and Jerry Waugh, who retires this summer as coach of women's golf and who is a former assistant athletics director.
Ryan Robertson, St. Charles, Mo., senior and a member of the men's basketball team, and Adrienne Turner, Goshen, Ind., senior and a member of the women's swimming team, won the Senior Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards. Both were also recognized as Academic All-Americans.
Story by Liz Caldwell, University Relations, (785) 864-8851