Stuart Larson wins UHCL Piper nomination
Ashley Toman
The Signal
The UHCL Piper Award Committee named Stuart Larson, associate director of art and design, as the 2011-2012 Piper Award nominee for the university.
Larson will compete for this years’s Minnie Stevens Piper Award, a prestigious award honoring professors for excellence in teaching in the state of Texas.
“When I found out I was the nominee, I was definitely giddy,” Larson said. “Last year, I was thrilled to be one of the finalists, but I’m so honored to be the nominee this year. The Piper Award is one of the few truly great awards that a faculty can receive, and one of the most important elements of that is the fact that the students are the ones that nominated you. Having the students support me really is a fantastic, overwhelming experience.”
The Piper Professors Program is operated by The Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation, which was organized in 1950 and is a nonprofit, charitable corporation. The Piper Professors Program began in 1958 and includes outstanding professors from two- and four-year colleges, public and private.
“We congratulate Professor Larson on being selected as this year’s Piper Award nominee from UHCL,” said President William Staples. “His dedication to teaching, passion for his field and continued investigation of news and innovative ways to strengthen his art and his teaching of art, make him a most deserving candidate for this prestigious award.”
Larson’s teaching abilities has also earned the respect of his fellow faculty.
“The courses that Professor Larson teaches involve different computer programs,” said UHCL Assistant Professor of Digital Media Studies Leo Chan. “Courses like that are challenging to teach, as technology is ever-changing. The computer programs used for teaching those classes are regularly upgraded, which requires him to relearn the programs every time he teaches the courses. He is always well-prepared, thorough and organized when teaching his classes. Professor Larson is beloved by his students; he always challenges his students to go beyond the basics and produce the best work they can.”
Students who have taken classes from Larson praise his unique teaching methods that prepare them for life after college.
“Stuart brings real-world experiences into the classroom,” said Matt Griesmyer, director of communication at the Clear Lake Area Chamber of Commerce and former student of Larson’s. “He gets design challenges from around the area, contacts advertising agencies to critique assignments and more. It’s the thing I benefitted most from his class.”
Larson received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Kansas City Art Institute and went on to receive his Master of Fine Arts at the Visual Studies Workshop in Rochester, N.Y.
He currently teaches Digital Photography, Graphic Design and Advertising Design and has been a UHCL faculty member since 2001.
“In 16 weeks, he somehow gets you to trust yourself, to go into every creative situation equipped with a confidence in what you already know,” said Cryss Godoy, UHCL digital media studies graduate student.
The UHCL Piper Award Committee is composed of an equal number of students and faculty. The committee reviews students’ nominations then reviews each finalist’s number of nominations, class load and accomplishments, and names one nominee to represent UHCL.
“I truly admire Professor Larson’s style of teaching,” said Kathryn Creek, graphic design major. “He approaches his students as ‘people’ first. He has been a source of encouragement and a great help with both class assignments as well as a sounding board and mentor when I approached him for feedback on my resume. I have not ever had a professor who actually cares about his students as much as Professor Larson.”
Larson explained that the two things he believes are important for being an effective teacher are the ability to adapt to the students’ needs and learning styles and being completely enthusiastic about the subject being taught.
“My philosophy is that it is the teacher’s job to make sure that the students are learning the material, and the thing that I do is that I alter my teaching style depending on the students’ needs,” Larson said. “If you go to a wedding and no one is dancing, it is the DJ’s fault.”
Each Piper Award recipient will receive $5,000 as well as a certificate of merit and a gold pin. The Minnie Stevens Award Committee will anounce the Piper Award recipients later this year.
“I believe the Minnie Stevens Piper Award is a recognition of teaching excellence,” said Joyce Ellis, executive director at Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation.
