Posted on December 13, 2010 by Christi Fish
UTSA President Ricardo Romo and Provost John Frederick joined executive administrators at a luncheon Nov. 29 honoring business professors Dr. Cory Hallam and Dr. Lisa Montoya and science professor Dr. Valerie Sponsel with the 2010 Richard S. Howe Outstanding Service to Undergraduates Teaching Award. The award recognizes UTSA tenured, tenure-track and non-tenure track professors with a minimum of three years of teaching experience at UTSA for developing signature learning and experiences for undergraduates outside the traditional classroom environment.
Each recipient received $2,000 from the Richard S. Howe Endowment. The fund honors former UTSA College of Engineering professor and mentor Richard “Dick” Howe, who was instrumental in establishing a strong foundation for the UTSA College of Engineering. The awards are supported by community leader and philanthropist Edith McAllister.
Dr. Hallam serves as director of the UTSA Center for Innovation and Technology Entrepreneurship (CITE) and faculty member in the Department of Information Systems and Technology Management. He was honored with the Howe award for creating an outlet for technology entrepreneurship through the $100,000 New Student Technology Venture Competition. The competition, which pairs UTSA seniors in engineering and business, offers the nation’s largest new venture start-up package for students.
The opportunity allows the students to test their entrepreneurial prowess and has fueled a desire in many to pursue new technology ventures. In the last year alone, one student start-up secured $60,000 in funding. A second applied for funding through the Texas Emerging Technology Fund. Due in large part to his reputation, presence and guidance, the College of Business undergraduate entrepreneurial program has shown a dramatic increase in student enrollment.
Dr. Montoya serves the College of Business as associate dean for undergraduate students and a faculty member in the Department of Economics. She was honored with the Howe award for regularly incorporating financial literacy field trips and service learning into her classroom syllabus. Her one-year program, Latinos Financial Issues, is a road show that plants a seed in youths regarding the benefits of college and helps them understand the crucial part education plays in elevating low-income families. It also results in internships for many of her students.
Through the program, Dr. Montoya’s students have delivered financial literacy and college-readiness instruction to at-risk high school students at Navarro Academy in San Antonio and E.T. Wrenn Middle School in the Edgewood School District.
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The Richard S. Howe Outstanding Service to Undergraduates Teaching Award is a new award developed and supported by Edith McAllister. Additionally, McAllister supports the Richard S. Howe Excellence in Service to Undergraduate Students Award. Established in 1999, the award is given annually to UTSA faculty and staff members who demonstrate an exemplary commitment to UTSA students by promoting student access and success.
— Christi Fish
