Your Favorite Professors
T he monthly online alumni newsletter, eTorch, has been popping with memories of some of UT’s finest faculty. Here are a few samples:
Trusty: Willing to Share
When Dr. Fran Trusty began to speak in that first class, I knew that I was in the presence of a nationally known expert in conflict management and that my graduate experience at UT would be superb! His knowledge gave him the stature of a senior professor, but his openness and willingness to share his learning made him unique. As the chairman of my dissertation committee, he was an incredible resource and coach. Dr. Trusty made my Knoxville experience tops and added credibility to my UT doctorate.
— Zelma Lansford, ’84, Ed.D.
Levy Made Us Want to Do Better
I’d like to add the name of Dr. Robert Levy, vice president for academic affairs, to the list of favorite professors. When I was in his class, Dr. Levy was teaching classes at night for the English department after working all day. We were an older class; many of my fellow students were working toward master’s degrees and had also worked a full day elsewhere. Dr. Levy came to class energetic and excited about his lectures, teaching us about British culture using an eclectic combination of examples ranging from quotes from Shakespeare to clips from Monty Python movies. One night he assigned each of us a character from The Canterbury Tales and we read through it in class—all while in character and some even in costume. The class was always a quick and fun three hours. Many of us went on to take the others classes he taught. On one occasion when I received a lower grade than I liked on a particular paper, I met with Dr. Levy to discuss why the paper was not as good as it could have been. He let me rewrite the paper and I did receive a higher grade, though I think my real motivation was that I felt I’d let him down and I just wanted to do better. Thank you, Dr. Levy, for always making us want to do better.
— Katie (Jager) Petito, ’89
Williams: An Inspiration
Dr. Don Williams, Ornamental Horticulture and Landscape Design, UT Institute of Agriculture: It was a real privilege to be a part of Dr. Williams’s class. He was true to his profession and fair in the classroom. He expected us all to work as equals, even us girls in his landscape construction class. He not only inspired me professionally, but personally as well, when he would open his home and family life to us each semester for a department social at his home. Because of him, I chose to pursue teaching agriculture as a career, and I strive to touch at least one person’s life like he did mine. His passing was a true loss for UT.
—Kerrie Wetzel Bradford, ’99, ornamental horticulture and landscape design; ag teacher, Kingsport, Tennessee
Best of Engineering
My favorite teacher was Dr. James Euler (mechanical engineering). He brought so much energy and interest in every class he taught. I consider myself to be the luckiest graduate student, as I was the last graduate student he advised on a research project. He was an extremely helpful teacher, yet he would push his students to get the best out of them. My #2 pick would be Dr. Osama Solomon (engineering science and mechanics), for a number of reasons. When I was going to school, he received the best professor award multiple times. His delivery of material on the subjects of mechanics, dynamics, and finite element method was unbelievable. He made the subject matter so simple that even an average student would grasp very complex and difficult concepts. And the #3 spot goes to Dr. Frank Speckhart (mechanical engineering). He is one of the professors who can put you on the path of innovation and invention—a brilliant professor with a down-to-earth personality.
— Qamar Asghar, ’90, mechanical engineering, Systron Donner Automotive Division
You can read all the e-mails at http://pr.utk.edu/etorch/faculty/.
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