ATHENS, W.Va. (Hinton News) – The winner of the Faculty Merit Foundation’s 2022 Professor of the Year award is Concord University Distinguished Professor of Geology, Dr. Joseph L. Allen. The award was presented on Tuesday, April 18 during a banquet in the Great Hall of the Culture Center in Charleston.
“I’m honored to be the recipient of the 2022 Faculty Merit Foundation Professor of the Year. West Virginia colleges and universities have some incredibly talented faculty that rival the best in any state. Concord provides an incredible array of opportunities, and I’m fortunate to be able to contribute to programs that help our students succeed,” said Dr. Allen.
Dr. Allen earned his bachelor’s degree in geological sciences from Michigan State University in 1988. He received his master’s degree in geology from East Carolina University in 1990 and his doctoral degree in geological sciences from the University of Kentucky in 1994.
Since joining Concord’s faculty in 1998, Dr. Allen has taught geology classes at the basic and advanced levels, including courses for nonmajors and first-year students. He currently serves as chair of the university’s Department of Physical and Environmental Sciences, a role he served from 1998-2006 and again from 2014 to present. Dr. Allen also has served as chair of the Division of Science, Mathematics, and Health (2002-2014).
Dr. Allen has been published in a wide variety of educational-based and scientific journals, including Journal of Structural Geology; Tectonophysics; Organic Letters; Geological Society of America Bulletin; and the Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. He has served as a peer reviewer of more than 100 manuscripts and grant proposals for scientific journals, funding agencies, book publishers, and graduate theses. Dr. Allen has been awarded $2.9 million in externally funded research grants contracts and is a frequent and in-demand presenter, lecturer, guest speaker and panelist—regionally, nationally, and internationally.
In addition to the 2022 Professor of the Year honor, Dr. Allen has been presented with Concord University’s Faculty Scholarship and Creativity Award (2009) and the University of Kentucky’s Chevron Fellowship (1993). In 2012, he was the featured scientist in “Leading Undergraduates to the Edge of Science” (The Neuron, West Virginia Journal of Science and Research).
Dr. Allen maintains several professional affiliations, including the American Geophysical Union; Council on Undergraduate Research; Geological Society of America; National Association of Geoscience Teachers; and Sigma Gamma Epsilon, the National Honor Society for Earth Sciences.
The Faculty Merit Foundation was created in 1984 to recognize and reward innovation and creativity among the faculties of West Virginia’s public and private colleges and universities. Through the Professor of the Year program, the outstanding achievements of those individuals are brought to the attention of the public. A $10,000 cash award is given to the candidate selected as Professor of the Year, with smaller awards to the other finalists.
The Professor of the Year award is sponsored by: United Bank; Bowles Rice LLP; Greene Ketchum Bailey & Tweel LLP; Maier Foundation; and The Daywood Foundation, Inc. For additional information call (304) 347-2131.
Four Professor of the Year finalists also were recognized at this year’s banquet: Cheryl Fleming McKinney, CPA, CGMA, Professor of Business, Glenville State University; Deanna Schmitt, PhD, Associate Professor of Biological Sciences, West Liberty University; Stephanie Slocum-Schaffer, PhD, Professor of Political Science, Global Studies, and Geography, Shepherd University; and Peter J. Ward, PhD, Professor of Biomedical Sciences, West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine.
