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Bob Gustafson Wins Ohio State Distinguished Faculty Service Award

Bob Gustafson, Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering, was recently named a winner of Ohio State’s President and Provost's Award for Distinguished Faculty Service. The award honors faculty members whose contributions to the development and implementation of university policies and programs through non-administrative roles have been extensive and have made documentable impact on the quality of the university. 

The recipients also have continued to provide effective teaching and have maintained an active program of research, scholarship, or creative work. 

Recipients are nominated by members of the university community and are selected by a committee of faculty, administrators, and previous recipients. They receive both a cash award of $3,000 and an increase of $1,200 to their base salaries from the Office of Academic Affairs.

Here is the announcement of the honor by Ohio State's University Communications office:

The quantity of Bob Gustafson's service contributions to Ohio State is considerable and impressive, but his colleagues across the university note that whether he has been charged with reviewing the undergraduate curriculum, the structure of a college, or the university budgeting model, he does so with polished instincts, wisdom, and civility that make him an invaluable member of any committee.

And he has been a member of many. He has held a continuous thread of elected and appointed positions since 1993, including multiple terms on University Senate and two terms on the senate Steering Committee. His chairmanship of the Council on Enrollment and Student Progress was transformational; the senate had debated its abolishment until he took the committee through an extensive strategic planning process that reaffirmed its role and function. His ad-hoc committee work spans general education, budgeting, and academic structure.

Gustafson also was the Engineering representative on the 2001-02 General Education Review Committee (the "Blackwell Committee") that restructured the GEC for the 21st century, then followed that immediately by serving on the committee whose work eventually led the re-consolidating of the arts and sciences into one college.

"Bob's career at Ohio State embodies dedication to university service at all levels," a colleague wrote. "He has made the university a better place to work and study through his gentle approach and wry smile, and we are all better faculty and staff for having worked with him."

Gustafson holds a doctorate from Michigan State University and was recruited to Ohio State in 1987.