Dr. Jodie L. Lutkenhaus, assistant professor and the William and Ruth Neely Faculty Fellow in the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering, is the recipient of the Montague-CTE Scholar Award for 2014-2015, from the Dwight Look College of Engineering at Texas A&M University. Lutkenhaus came to the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering in 2010. From day one, she said she purposed to make complex material comprehensible and to impart enjoyment for learning among her students.
“If you’re not having fun, the students aren’t having fun," she said. "Learning is fun. You have to integrate what you love so that the students will love it. We’re a team learning together, trying to figure out the material together—why things work a certain way.”
Namely, Lutkenhaus has employed multiple sensory-appeals in the instruction of thermodynamics via her introduction of new technology and approaches to complex learning.
“I wanted to change the perception of thermodynamics, or at least make it palatable," she said.
In the classroom, Lutkenhaus uses a combination of traditional and millennial methods, closing the distance between the textbook and application. Her tailored use of the Livescribe® pen, for example, has enabled Lutkenhaus to provide on-demand instruction of application exercises and problems, through recorded simulations that appear in video (visual and auditory) formats for students to reference.
“It’s one of the highest teaching awards in the college and I was actually really surprised I got it,” she said. "Now I have the funds that are going to allow me to purchase some cool demonstrations for the class.”
A blend of teaching styles in the journey of learning is important to Lutkenhaus.
“To some of the students the math can be a little scary, but if you practice it, it’s not as intimidating,” she said, drawing upon the multiple delivery platforms she utilizes in achieving understanding.
In the classroom, students receive instruction that is complemented by worksheets, traditional lecture formats, and Youtube® videos for relevant examples of lecture topics. In her polymers class, Lutkenhaus also applies a similar format with additional demonstration scenarios.
Outside of the classroom, Lutkenhaus said she likes to get to know the students in the role of mentor.
“They want to be treated like adults,” she said.
Dr. Naz Karim, department head, said, “Dr. Lutkenhaus is one of the most effective classroom instructors in the department. She has a knack of relating to students at their level and at the same time effortlessly teaching them complex concepts of thermodynamics and polymers. She is using all the modern pedagogical methods and tools to make her classroom interactive and fun. Congratulations to her; she is most deserving of this honor."
Earlier this year, Lutkenhaus was named a recipient of the George Armistead, Jr. ’23 Faculty Excellence Teaching Award 2014.
In 1937, Kenneth Montague graduated from Texas A&M University and entered the Texas oil industry, before he and his wife Judy left an endowment to Texas A&M in 1991 that funds awards for lifelong learners, in the name of the Montague-CTE Scholar Award.