Faculty Excellence Awards
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W. James Godfrey (School of Arts)
W. James Godfrey is the coordinator for graphic design in the Department of Art & Visual Communications and has been at UVU since 2002. He believes in setting high standards in the classroom and helping students work towards achieving them. He continues to work in the field of graphic design as a consultant for many companies, specializing in Web site architecture and design. Prior to teaching in higher education, he was creative director and partner at KHG Advertising. He and his wife, Diane, have been married 17 years and have four children. |
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Talitha R. Hudgins (School of Education)
Talitha R. Hudgins, a native of Jacksonville, Fla., has worked at UVU for four years and is currently chair of the Department of Secondary Education. She holds three Utah Level 3 licenses in secondary education, multimedia and technology specialist. She also has a Florida Teacher Certificate. She has a doctorate in teaching and learning with an emphasis in educational technology from the University of Utah. She enjoys running, teaching and using technology, especially sharing digital stories.. |
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Craig Dan Thulin (College of Science and Health)
Craig Dan Thulin is an expert in protein chemistry and proteomics. He was a faculty member at BYU for nine years before coming to UVU. He has published two book chapters and more than two-dozen peer-reviewed scientific papers. In addition, he is the co-inventor on three patents for biomarkers of complications of pregnancy. He was elected the youngest member ever of Sigma XI, the society of scientific research. He and his wife, Shauna, have three children. |
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Laurel Howard (University College) Laurel Howard, who was born in Fillmore, Utah, completed a doctorate in education at Utah State University in 2008. She enjoys being able to work with such great students and colleagues at UVU. The classes she teaches are capped at 30 students, enabling her to get to know each student and ascertain when they need help. She has been married 32 years and has six children, including identical triplet daughters. She also has 12 grandchildren. |
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Huch J. Rode (Woodbury School of Business) Hugh J. Rode graduated from law school in 2001 and was a justice court judge from 2004-2008. He believes the students at UVU are outstanding, and he says the best part of dealing with the students is they are not just his students, they are his friends. He has been married 37 years and has seven children and 10 grandchildren. His favorite material possession is his 1955 Chevy hot rod. |
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Pat Ormond (College of Technology and Computing)
Pat Ormond was the site chair for the Rocky Mountain Consortium for Computing Sciences in Colleges (RMCCSC) national conference at UVU in 2007; the co-site chair and conference chair for the RMCCSC conference held in Colorado Springs, Colo., and conference chair of the RMCCS in Farmington, N.M., in 2009. He and his wife, Dianne, have been married 33 years and have seven children. His family enjoys the outdoors, running, rock climbing, hiking, fishing, photography and hunting. |
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Shannon Mussett (College of Humanitites and Social Sciences)
Shannon Mussett, originally from Denver, is currently the associate chair for philosophy, humanities and gender studies. She is the past chair of interdisciplinary studies. She enjoys teaching such a diverse group of students as far as educational backgrounds and goals are concerned. She and her husband, Michael, save two children. |
Adjunct Faculty Excellence Awards
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Courtney Davis (School of Arts) Courtney Davis has been a lecturer and adjunct professor at UVU since 2006 and teaches art. In addition, she is an attorney for the law firm Hill, Johnson & Schmutz and practices in the areas of family law and civil litigation. She thrives on the energy students bring to studying the glories of art history and he often finds herself learning from them in the process. She enjoys writing ghost stories and essays on art, and traveling to museums. |
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Anita Spainhower (School of Education)
Anita Spainhower, a native of Payson, Utah, enjoys the personal relationships with students and faculty here at UVU as well as being as being a part of an organization focused on the success of our community. She was the head teacher at Mountainland Head Start from 1978-1985 and the director of Intermountain Health Care’s childcare and education department from 1985-2000. She has been married 29 years and has two children and one granddaughter. |
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Andrew Stanton (College of Science and Health)
Andrew Stanton is a paleontologist from Intermountain Paleo-Consultants where he evaluates proposed sites for oil wells and other development for at-risk fossil resources. He enjoys the opportunity to teach a subject he is excited about, and loves it when his students open their eyes and see the marvels in the natural world. In his spare time he enjoys hiking and camping. |
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Tiffany Yoast (University College)
Tiffany Yoast, a breast cancer survivor, received a bachelor’s degree in English from UVU in 2004 and a master’s degree in education at Nova Southeastern University in 2009. From the first day she taught in a UVU classroom she knew this was where she was supposed to be. She enjoys spending time with her two children, reading, playing and watching volleyball. |
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Paul R. Conrad (Woodbury School of Business)
Paul R. Conrad holds a master’s in public administration from the Romney Institute of Public Management at BYU. Prior to his current position as the assistant director of admissions/financial aid counseling at BYU, he worked as the financial aid director there from 2002-2008. He enjoys being a part of the growth and transition of UVU. He and his wife, Camille, have five children. |
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Gary M. Buckway (College of Technology and Computing)
Gary M. Buckway, who has taught for the most part of his 25 years in the evenings and on weekends, works with students who are still in the workforce trying to better their education. He is an Eagle Scout, recipient of the District Award of Merit from the Boy Scouts of America, and recipient of the Silver Beaver Council Award. He and his wife, Rita, have six children. He enjoys hiking with his family. |
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Matthew Snarr (College of Humanities and Social Sciences)
Matthew Snarr has been a teacher for more than 15 years and has been here at UVU for more than 10 years. For the last few years he had been involved with deaf program for conferences and retreats. Interaction with people on a daily basis and sharing American Sign Language and the deaf culture with people is what he enjoys here at UVU. He had his wife, Lynn, have three children. He loves camping, fishing and photography. |