Contact: Courtney Coufal, 979-845-1542, cacoufal@tamu.edu
Dr. Bill Dugas, left, acting Vice Chancellor and Dean of Agriculture and Life Sciences, made a surprise visit to Dr. Kerri Gehring’s class on Sept. 2 to make the award announcement. He was accompanied by Marty Holmes, Association of Former Students, and Dr. Russell Cross, head of animal science, as well as Gehring’s family and graduate students.
COLLEGE STATION — Dr. Kerri B. Gehring, associate professor in the Department of Animal Science, is a recipient of the 2014 Association of Former Students’ Distinguished Achievement Award for College Level – Teaching.
The award was presented during the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences’ 2014 Awards Ceremony in September.
Gehring joined the Department of Science in 2005 and leads an active teaching and research program. Since her appointment, she has advised three undergraduate research scholars, chaired or co-chaired 17 master of science students and four doctoral students, and served as a committee member for five additional graduate students. Gehring teaches Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point System, a graduate/undergraduate class, each fall. In the spring, she alternates between two graduate courses Food Safety: Policy, Regulations and Issues and Applied Microbiology for Foods of Animal Origin: Processing, Sanitation and Sanitary Design. Gehring also often serves as a guest lecturer for several other animal science courses.
According to the nomination letter, Dr. Gehring “understands and appreciates that teaching via research is an important aspect of her responsibilities.” She is recognized as one of the leading food safety experts in the United States and is “able to guide both undergraduate and graduate students through the difficult federal regulations and research decisions to ensure that her students enter the workforce with valuable insight that can be applied to daily food production.”
A three-time graduate of Texas A&M University, Gehring received a bachelor’s in food science in 1986, a master’s in nutrition in 1989 and a doctorate in nutrition in 1994. Gehring also serves as President and CEO of the International HACCP Alliance, a non-profit organization that promotes HACCP training and serves as a resource for scientific and technical support.
The Distinguished Achievement Award recognizes, encourages, and rewards the superior classroom teachers whose command of their respective discipline, teaching methodologies, pervasive caring, communication skills, and commitment to the learning process exemplify the meaning of teacher/mentor in its highest sense. This award is designed to distinguish those teachers who maintain high expectations of their students and who ensure academic rigor in their courses.
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For more information regarding news from the Department of Animal Science, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Texas A&M University, please contact Courtney Coufal at cacoufal@tamu.edu or (979) 845-1542.