Universities of Wisconsin, Alliant Energy recognize outstanding students, instructors for 2023

Thursday, October 26, 2023

MADISON, Wis.—Four Universities of Wisconsin students and three educators are being recognized today by the Universities of Wisconsin and Alliant Energy Foundation for their outstanding achievements. The Alliant Energy Erroll B. Davis, Jr. Achievement Awards recognize the outstanding academic and community-service efforts of students from traditionally underrepresented minority groups who are pursuing a degree in business or engineering at UW-Madison or UW-Platteville. The Alliant Energy James R. Underkofler Excellence in Teaching Awards recognize outstanding commitment to undergraduate student success and the ability to inspire in students an enthusiasm for learning. The awards are presented to students and educators from Universities of Wisconsin campuses located within Alliant Energy’s service area.

“I appreciate the Alliant Energy Foundation for generously supporting these awards to recognize student achievement and influential teaching,” said Universities of Wisconsin President Jay Rothman. “Congratulations to this year’s dedicated students and instructors on their impressive accomplishments.”

“We are honored to continue the legacy of these awards, which were created to recognize the hard work of students and faculty,” said Julie Bauer, executive director of the Alliant Energy Foundation. “These annual awards reflect Alliant Energy’s long-standing investment in education and our shared future.”

The recipients of the 17th annual Alliant Energy Erroll B. Davis, Jr. Achievement Awards are:

  • Olivia Asare, UW-Madison. A Chancellor Scholar, Asare has immersed herself in leadership roles on campus. She serves as a peer mentor in the Chancellor’s scholarship program and is president of Diverse Leaders of Tomorrow. She also supports students as a housefellow in campus dormitories. She interned for both the Boys and Girls Club of Fox Valley and for British Petroleum and worked as a youth advocacy consultant with Terraluna Collaborative. She earned first place at the P&G (Procter & Gamble) 2021 case study competition. Asare plans to graduate in May 2024 with a Bachelor of Business Administration, majoring in Supply Chain Management, Operations and Technology Management, and Marketing.
  • Favour Butterfield, UW-Platteville. Butterfield is a member of the College of Engineering, Mathematics and Science Undergraduate Research Program, where she works with recycled materials. A Women in STEM program student assistant, she participates in outreach programs for middle and high school girls. She founded and serves as president of the campus’s National Society of Black Engineers club; participates in the Society of Women Engineers; and serves on the Student Senate. She has held various positions with EMT International in Hobart, Wis. She earned a certificate in industrial maintenance and associate degrees in electro-mechanical technology and automation engineering from Northeast Wisconsin Technical College. Butterfield plans to graduate in May 2024 with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering.
  • Marcelo Garay, UW-Platteville. Garay knew from an early age that he wanted to work in a field involving financial data. His career goal is to become a financial analyst to help businesses and individuals achieve their financial goals. At UW-Platteville, Marcelo has taken investment classes and corporate finance courses, which have given him a background in financial analysis, valuation, and risk management. He participates in the Accounting and Finance Club as well as a student-run investment fund, acquiring hands-on experience in financial analysis and portfolio management. He is a member of the UW-Platteville Men’s Varsity Soccer Team. Garay plans to graduate in May 2024 with a Bachelor of Business Administration, majoring in Finance.
  • Naomi Lewis, UW-Madison. Lewis is president of the UW-Madison chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers. She has served on the Inclusion, Equity, and Diversity in Engineering Student Advisory Council and worked with campus leadership to advocate for the needs of engineering students, helping develop outreach and recruitment programs that seek to broaden participation among students historically underrepresented in engineering. Lewis has also served as a College of Engineering Student Ambassador providing presentations and tours to prospective engineering students. Lewis plans to graduate in December 2023 from UW-Madison with a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering with an emphasis in supply chain management and human factoring.

The recipients of the 33rd annual Alliant Energy James R. Underkofler Excellence in Teaching Awards are:

  • Kristy Burkholder, Teaching Professor, Department of Human Development and Family Studies, School of Human Ecology, UW-Madison.
    Dr. Burkholder seeks to create valuable educational experiences for her students through emotional connection and building community. In addition to helping students succeed academically, she is passionate about helping students discover their values, talents, and purpose in life with the goal of improving their well-being and the well-being of others. Most of her students are preparing for professional careers in which empathy, listening, and effective communication are essential, both to deliver effective services and to prevent burnout in emotionally draining professions. Dr. Burkholder advocates establishing “curriculums of consequence,” focusing on creating an integrated education that fosters effective strategies for solving persistent social challenges. Her strategies and objectives for supporting student learning are based on her knowledge of effective teaching practices and her understanding of human ecological theory, systems theory, and design thinking.
  • Gail K. Hoffman, Professor, Department of Health and Human Performance, UW-Platteville Richland.
    Prof. Hoffman describes her life as a constant journey toward growth for her students and herself and feels a sense of pride when her former students achieve success. Originally a National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) coach, her goal as a general education instructor is to make lasting impacts developing students through Dweck’s mindset theory, encouraging growth (versus fixed) mindsets. Prof. Hoffman has taught classes focusing on social sciences, recreation, athletics, health and wellness, and students’ first-year experience. She also taught the university’s first sport law course (HHP 3050) and was the first department member to teach distance education courses to all three UW-Platteville campuses, co-designing the department’s first online courses. Her high-impact teaching practices include small-group collaborative projects. For example, in Introduction to Sport Law, students collaborate with a community business and create an emergency action plan. Prof. Hoffman is admired by students and colleagues alike for her positive demeanor, energetic personality, and contagious enthusiasm for both fun and learning.
  • Howard Schweber, Professor, Department of Political Science, UW-Madison.
    Dr. Schweber’s goal in teaching, whether he is teaching a large lecture course or small seminar class, is to meet students where they are, then take them somewhere new. Over his career, he has learned about the need to create and maintain an environment that is welcoming to students with different identities, ideologies, and backgrounds. He works to engage all students, from the most outgoing to the most reticent. Above all, he has learned that good teaching is based on self-reflection, openness to innovation, and constant improvement. During COVID-19, he redesigned his lecture courses in the form of short mini-lectures presented online and asynchronously. His teaching awards include the 2018 Excellence in Service Award from the Institute of International Education’s Scholar Rescue Fund. Dr. Schweber serves as the faculty advisor and coach for the UW College Mock Trial Team, the UW College Moot Court Team, and Wisconsin’s undergraduate politics and law journal, “Sifting and Winnowing.” He is the founding editor of Constitutional Studies.

About the Awards

The Alliant Energy Foundation established an endowment in 2006 to honor Erroll B. Davis, Jr.’s distinguished record of public service. Davis, the first African-American leader of a “Business Week 1000” company, is a former chief executive of Alliant Energy and a former member of the Board of Regents of the Universities of Wisconsin. He was interim Superintendent of Atlanta Public Schools from 2012 to 2014.

The James R. Underkofler Excellence in Teaching Awards are given as a tribute to the energy company’s long-time senior executive, James R. Underkofler (1923–2015), who was a staunch proponent of excellence in undergraduate teaching. He spent his entire career with the Wisconsin Power and Light Co. (now Alliant Energy), ending with his retirement in 1990 as chairman and CEO.

Both award programs are administered by the Universities of Wisconsin Office of Academic and Student Affairs.

For more information about the awards, visit:

Photos

Download high-resolution photos of the recipients by clicking each image above.

The Universities of Wisconsin serve approximately 161,000 students. Awarding nearly 37,000 degrees annually, the universities are Wisconsin’s talent pipeline, putting graduates in position to increase their earning power, contribute to their communities, and make Wisconsin a better place to live. Nearly 90 percent of in-state Universities of Wisconsin graduates stay in the state five years after earning a degree. The universities provide a 23:1 return on state investment. The Universities of Wisconsin also contribute to the richness of Wisconsin’s culture and economy with groundbreaking research, new companies and patents, and boundless creative intellectual energy.

Media Contact

Mark Pitsch Universities of Wisconsin (608) 265-3419 mpitsch@uwsa.edu