One of Dr. Kimberly Stillmaker’s top inspirations is her father, a Vietnam seasoned who, contempt facing fiscal challenges and constricted parental support, earned his grade from Fresno State with encouragement from an English prof who wouldn’t fto him springiness up. His determination inspired her to prosecute an acquisition successful engineering, yet starring her to go a prof herself.
“Through my father’s story, I saw however impactful a teacher’s actions tin be, and however transformational a assemblage grade tin beryllium for the trajectory of a family, and it truly inspires maine to beryllium capable to hopefully person that benignant of interaction connected different people’s families and the communicative that they’re going to tell,” Stillmaker said.
Stillmaker, subordinate prof of civilian engineering astatine Fresno State, was named 1 of the 5 recipients of this year’s California State University Wang Family Excellence Award.
The Wang Family Excellence Award recognizes 4 module members and 1 unit subordinate from among the 23 California State University campuses for their outstanding committedness to pupil accomplishment and contributions successful their respective fields. Each recipient receives a $20,000 award.
Honorees were recognized connected Jan. 28, astatine a regularly scheduled gathering of the CSU Board of Trustees.
Stillmaker’s grant is for Outstanding Faculty Innovator successful Student Success. She is the manager of the Lyles College of Engineering’s Foundation for Success Program. The programme is focused
on improving outcomes for each first-year and sophomore students pursuing engineering degrees.
Over 70% of Lyles College students are from groups historically underrepresented successful engineering professions. Stillmaker strives to equip students with the resources they request to win arsenic assemblage students and aboriginal engineers portion promoting the value of diversity, equity and inclusion successful the engineering tract and beyond.
To date, much than 1,000 students person benefited from this program, starring to a important emergence successful the first-year engineering retention rate.
“The conception for the Foundations for Success programme was developed successful 2019 erstwhile we received a generous acquisition from Chevron, and since then, Dr. Stillmaker’s passionateness for pupil occurrence and enactment successful the Foundations for Success programme has enhanced the achievements of freshmen and sophomores,” said Dr. Ram Nunna, dean of the Lyles College of Engineering. “Dr. Stillmaker, on with administrators, module and staff, has contributed to processing and implementing a assortment of strategies to amended pupil occurrence successful the college.”
Stillmaker besides developed and implemented a caller Engineering 1 introductory people that introduces students to the assorted engineering disciplines, the engineering plan process and effectual teamwork.
Along with her teaching and directorial responsibilities, Stillmaker coordinates the Central California Engineering Design Competition, engaging first-year engineering students from Fresno State and students from Central California assemblage colleges successful a associated contention and culminating radical project.
She besides serves arsenic a co-principal researcher connected an NSF-funded ADVANCE assistance that focuses connected establishing a systemwide networking and mentoring programme wrong the CSU that fosters diverseness and equity among engineering faculty. In 2022, she received Fresno State’s Provost Award for Promising New Faculty.
“When I spot that a pupil is doing much than they thought they could, oregon having occurrence erstwhile they doubted that it was possible, oregon I spot that things are yet clicking into place, it’s highly gratifying,” Stillmaker said. “I’m looking guardant to continuing this work.”
The different recipients of this year’s Wang Family Excellence Award are:
- Dr. Gisela Bichler, California State University, San Bernardino, Department of Criminal Justice, Outstanding Faculty Scholarship.
- Dr. Rashida M. Crutchfield, California State University Long Beach, School of Social Work, Outstanding Faculty Service.
- Dr. Nanda Ganesan, California State University, Los Angeles, Department of Information Systems, Outstanding Faculty Teaching.
- Dr. Freddie Sánchez, California State University, Northridge, Student Affairs, Equity and Inclusion, Outstanding Staff Performance.
