Harry Greene Earns Weiss Fellowship at Cornell

ITHACA, NY (02/04/2011)(readMedia)-- Cornell University professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, Harry Greene, has been honored with a 2011 Stephen H. Weiss Presidential Fellowship – the university's most prestigious teaching award.

Greene received his undergraduate degree from Southwestern University in 1967 and earned a Ph.D from the University of Tennessee in 1977. He taught at the University of California, Berkeley for 20 years before his tenure at Cornell.

The fellowship – given each year to tenured Cornell faculty members who display sustained records of inspiring and distinguished teaching of undergraduate students – comes with $5,000 per year for five years, to be used for any university-related purpose.

Greene was recognized for his love of teaching and willingness to help students, as the selection committee wrote, "with wisdom, humor, grace and compassion." It was noted that in the large introductory biology course for non-majors, Greene communicates knowledge and joy in the subject "so well that students are fascinated, often discovering a previously unsuspected interest and even passion for biology," his award letter reads. He was also called equally effective in the most advanced courses, where "your eminence in the field is most evident."

The 2011 Stephen H. Weiss Presidential Fellowships were announced by the Cornell Board of Trustees at its Jan. 21-22 meeting in New York City. The award was established in 1993 and is given to select faculty nominated by academic staff and students.

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