KU News Release

LAWRENCE — Members of Mortar Board honor society at the University of Kansas will recognize five faculty members as Outstanding Educators in two upcoming ceremonies.

The five recipients are

— Dennis Domer, acting director of the Museum Studies Program and director of graduate studies for the Department of American Studies
— Denise Linville, lecturer in journalism
— Kimberly Schutte, graduate teaching assistant in history
— Robert Sorem, associate dean of engineering
— Susan M. Stagg-Williams, associate professor of chemical and petroleum engineering

The awards will be presented at the KU men’s basketball game against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Tuesday, Nov. 23, at Allen Fieldhouse.

The Outstanding Educators will receive certificates during a 1:30 reception Sunday, Dec. 5, at the Malott Room in the Kansas Union. Mortar Board members and alumni as well as university administrators and faculty colleagues are invited to attend.

Mortar Board President Mathew Shepard and Mortar Board Outstanding Educator co-chairs Mark Campbell and Kathleen Bole will present certificates to the honorees.

KU’s Torch chapter of Mortar Board has presented its teaching awards since 1974. Mortar Board members nominate educators for their devotion to academics, teaching style, accessibility, knowledge of their subjects and other special qualities identified by the KU chapter. Mortar Board’s 48 members selected the winners.

Membership in Mortar Board is based on distinguished achievement in scholarship, leadership and service. Students must have a 3.0 grade-point average and hold senior-level status. KU’s Mortar Board chapter was founded in 1912 as the Torch senior women’s honor society. In 1924, it affiliated with the national Mortar Board honor society. In 1975, Mortar Board opened membership to men. KU chapter advisers are Mary Burg, executive assistant to Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little; Charlie Persinger, director of university ceremonies and events; Charles Marsh, associate professor of journalism, and Sandy Garrett, Lawrence Mortar Board Alumni.

Brief biographical information about the Outstanding Educators is below.

Dennis Domer is acting director of the Museum Studies Program and director of graduate studies for the Department of American Studies. He taught at KU from 1976 to 1999 before retiring as associate dean of the School of Architecture and Urban Planning (now the School of Architecture, Design and Planning) and as an associate professor of American studies. During those years, he served in several administrative posts, including assistant to the dean in 1976, acting dean in 1980-81 and associate dean from 1981 to 1999. From 1984 to 1985, he was acting associate vice chancellor of academic affairs. In 2000, Domer was appointed as the Clay Lancaster Distinguished Professor of Historic Preservation at the University of Kentucky. In 2006, he retired from Kentucky’s faculty and returned to KU to teach architectural history in 2007. His research and books focus on American architecture and landscapes. Last spring, Domer taught the History of the American House, which will be offered online in the future. In spring, he will teach an interdisciplinary studio/workshop on new cities in the United States. A native Kansan, Domer earned a bachelor’s at Baker University and studied at the University of Kiel in Germany as a Fulbright fellow. He came to KU as a National Defense Fellow, earning a master’s in Germanic languages and literatures in 1969. Domer earned a doctorate from KU in 1980 and a second master’s degree in 1990 from George Washington University.

Denise Linville first taught introductory marketing courses for two years in the School of Business as a graduate teaching assistant. Since joining the journalism faculty in 1986, she has taught undergraduate and graduate strategic communication courses in Lawrence and at KU’s Edwards Campus in Overland Park. During those years, she and her students have conducted numerous marketing research projects for local nonprofits and campus groups. KU seniors selected Linville as the 2010 HOPE (Honor for an Outstanding Progressive Educator) Award winner. Seniors nominated her for the award in 1988, 1990, 2002 and 2003. Even before completing her doctorate in higher education in 1992 at KU, Linville gained recognition for her teaching skills. She was named by the KU Pan-Hellenic Association as an Exemplary Educator in 1990. Linville also received the KU Advertising Club Faculty Advancement Award in 1993.

Kim Schutte specializes in British history and is writing her doctoral dissertation in addition to working as a graduate teaching assistant and an instructor in both the Humanities and Western Civilization Program and the history department. Before entering KU’s doctoral program in 2006, Schutte had taught for 14 years at Missouri Western State College in St. Joseph. At KU, the undergraduate history classes she has taught include Europe from Renaissance to Revolution. Schutte has published a biography of Margaret Douglas, countess of Lennox, niece of Henry VIII and mother-in-law of Mary, Queen of Scots. Her dissertation will examine the marriage patterns of elite British women from the 16th through the 20th centuries and how those patterns intersect with changing conceptions of rank, class and gender. She is also interested in Tudor court culture. She earned two bachelor’s degrees from Missouri Western State College, one in psychology (1986) and another in history (1987). She completed a master’s degree in history from the University of Missouri in 1989.

Robert M. Sorem has served as associate dean for undergraduate studies in the School of Engineering since 2001. He is also an associate professor of mechanical engineering, teaching courses in vehicle design. Sorem has served as faculty adviser for Jayhawk Motorsports teams for more than 15 years. Sorem began teaching at KU as an assistant professor in 1994 after working for Dowell Schlumberger in research and engineering, where he co-invented 17 patents in less than four years. By 1997, his teaching skills were recognized with the Wesley G. Cramer Outstanding Mechanical Engineering Faculty Award in 1997 and 1998. He has since received a KU Center for Teaching Excellence Faculty Award and the School of Engineering Miller Award. During his tenure as associate dean, the school’s underrepresented minority enrollment has doubled from 4.5 percent to 9 percent and the female enrollment has increased more than 20 percent. Sorem earned a doctorate in mechanical engineering in 1991 and received master’s and bachelor’s degrees in mechanical engineering, all at KU. He is from a family of Jayhawks originally from Jetmore in western Kansas. His father, James R. Sorem Sr.; sister; and three brothers are all KU engineering graduates. His mother, Mary Joanne Sorem, earned a degree in nursing from KU.

Susan Stagg-Williams joined KU’s engineering faculty in 1999 and is known throughout the campus for her involvement with research and outreach in biofuels and alternative energy. She teaches classes at all levels but is currently teaching material and energy balances to sophomores and a senior lab. For the past two years, she worked as a Christy Scholar to establish hands-on demonstrations for use in undergraduate chemical engineering courses. Williams is a faculty fellow at the Center for Teaching Excellence and a 2009 recipient of a Kemper fellowship for outstanding teaching, advising and public outreach. She is the co-originator and director of the KU Biodiesel Initiative, which converts used cooking oil from the campus dining services into high-quality transportation fuel. Williams is also a leader on the Feedstock to Tailpipe research team that looks at sustainable feedstocks for the production of next-generation liquid fuels. Both projects provide learning opportunities for students. In addition, Williams is involved in public outreach including advising engineering camps for high school students and working with the Kansas Soybean Commission to provide research and development support to the soybean farming community. She earned a bachelor’s from the University of Michigan in 1994 and a doctorate in chemical engineering from the University of Oklahoma in 1999.

Mortar Board officers, all KU seniors, are listed below by hometown, major, parents’ names, high school and office held.

JOHNSON COUNTY
From Leawood 66209
Christopher Mark Campbell; biology; Mary and John Campbell; Rockhurst High School, Kansas City, Mo.; Outstanding Educator co-chair

NORTON COUNTY
From Lenora 67645
Mathew James Lawrence Shepard; economics and environmental studies; Norton High School; president

SEDGWICK COUNTY
From Wichita 67207
Megan Do; American studies and journalism; Huong Huynh and Hien Do; Wichita High School Southeast; vice-president

From Wichita 67216
Ying “Joanne” Zhou; business administration; Fredrick Plummer and Ying Liu; Campus High School; treasurer

MISSOURI
From Kansas City 64112
Kathleen McKenna Bole; architectural studies; Kaler and Eileen Bole; Shawnee Mission East High School; Outstanding Educator co-chair