News & Events
Featured Events
-
- MGIS Orientation
- 8/27/2009 10:00 AM
- Location: Blegen Hall, 445
News
Recent Award Recipients
Please join us in saluting Professor Helga Leitner for excellence in teaching as she is a recipient of the 2008-09 Award for Outstanding Contributions to Postbaccalaureate, Graduate, and Professional Education.This award recognizes the significance of excellent teaching by inducting the award recipients into the Academy of Distinguished Teachers. Academy members provide important leadership to the University community, serving as mentors, advisers, and spokespersons for the University's mission. Read more.
Join us in congratulating Professor Judith Martin recipient of the 2009 University of Minnesota President's Award for Outstanding Service. Established in 1997 to recognize faculty and staff who have provided exceptional service to the University, this award is presented each year in the spring and honors active or retired faculty or staff members who have gone well beyond their regular duties and have demonstrated an unusual commitment to the University community.
Regents Professor Eric Sheppard
Congratulations to Eric Sheppard who was recently named a Regents Professor of the University of Minnesota. The Regents Professor position was established in 1965 by the Board of Regents to recognize the national and international prominence of faculty members. It serves as the highest recognition for faculty who have made unique contributions to the quality of the University of Minnesota through exceptional accomplishments in teaching, research and scholarship or creative work, and contributions to the public good.
Eric is described by his colleagues as a "towering intellect, a universally admired educator and a highly respected leader." His contributions are recognized globally and have transformed the core understanding of the space economy, urban transformation, regional development, globalization and geographic science. He is credited with bringing the university's Department of Geography to a top-three national status. Considered to be one of the worlds leading geographers, he is the author of cutting-edge graduate and undergraduate textbooks, which have become key sources in classrooms around the world. His contributions to the Interdisciplinary Center for the Study of Global Change have made him a vital part in internationalizing the university. He has helped organize numerous international conferences and has been a keynote, plenary lecturer or invited lecturer in more than 130 conferences or universities across the globe. With his students, he is considered a successful advisor and a trusted mentor.
Mei-Ling Hsu
The Department of Geography is sad to report the passing of Mei-Ling Hsu who served our department and profession with distinction for over three decades and was a role model for many young scholars pursuing work in cartography and/or China.
Dr. Hsu was a highly-respected scholar in the area of cartographic symbolization, Chinese cartography, and map projections with additional specialties in population geography and East Asian studies. One of her most significant contributions was a population map of Taiwan produced in the 1970s, and updated with new data in the 1990s. She also helped build the cartography and GIS programs in the department. Mei-Ling Hsu joined the Minnesota Geography Department in 1965, and served as chair from 1994 to 1997. She also was the first Director of the University of Minnesota’s China Center.