Sba Presents Excellence in Teaching Award to Colorado State University Professor of Fishery and Wildlife Biology

A champion of the highest standards in undergraduate education at Colorado State University today received the 1999 State Board of Agriculture Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching Award. Dale Hein from the department of fishery and wildlife biology received a plaque and cash award in a ceremony at the SBA’s meeting at Colorado State.

Hein joined Margaret Barber, assistant professor of English and foreign languages at the University of Southern Colorado, and history Professor Doreen Hunter from Fort Lewis College, who also received the SBA award.

For more than 30 years, Hein has championed excellence in undergraduate education through innovative teaching, experiential learning and freely sharing his ideas and time. Over the past 20 years, he has served as chairman and key adviser for majors in wildlife biology and has been the department’s key adviser for both honors and nontraditional students. He conducts departmental outcomes assessments and currently serves on the University Scholastic Standards Committee.

He has served on Colorado State’s Curriculum-Advising Task Force, Honors Council, Undergraduate Instruction Committee, Faculty Council Steering Committee and the Scholarship Committee of the College of Natural Resources. For 10 years, Hein served as director of the Summer Field Ecology Program at Pingree Park.

Hein is noted by colleagues as being generous with his time for students during his extensive open office hours, meetings with parents, availability during the summer, serving as faculty advisor for student organizations, participating in student activities, leading weekend field trips, accompanying students to distant meetings and conducting practices for Colorado State’s Wildlife Bowl teams. A sampling of student comments follows.

"Dr. Hein is a bolt of energy and has a great sense of humor. He really makes dry material fun and exciting."

"You teach in a way that is understandable and you make your students feel comfortable enough to ask questions if they don’t understand."

"It’s nice to know that there are still teachers who care."

Nominators said that, "From Dr. Hein, we have learned more than ecology and wildlife biology, we have learned to think, listen, live, share, care, laugh at ourselves, be better teachers, better researchers, better friends and better people."

Hein received a bachelor’s from Oregon State University in 1959 and master’s and doctoral degrees in 1962 and 1965, respectively, from Iowa State University. All degrees were in wildlife management.

Hein was chosen for the Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching Award from an exceptional field of nominees at Colorado State University that included Ken Barbarick, soil and crop sciences; Mark Frasier, anatomy and neurobiology; Jill Kreutzer, human development and family studies; Richard Laven, forest sciences; Louann Reid, English; and Larry Todd, anthropology.

Hein was nominated by Stephen Flickinger, chairman; and A. William Alldredge; Kenneth Wilson; and Gary White of the department of fishery and wildlife biology. In addition, the CSU Student Chapter of the Wildlife Society submitted a nomination.