UC Faculty Rick Grosberg mentoring student

Faculty Share Insights on the Importance of Mentorship

Five University of California, Davis faculty members have been named the recipients of the 2017 Distinguished Mentoring Award.

The awards recognize the vital role mentoring plays in the academic and professional development of graduate students and postdoctoral scholars at UC Davis.  A certificate and $1,000 will be conferred to each awardee.

28 UC Davis faculty members were nominated for the 2017 awards and the selection of five recipients was made by the Graduate Council’s Graduate Student and Postdoctoral Welfare Committee. The recipients' insights on the importance of mentorship are featured below.

  • Sharon Strauss
    Professor and Chair, Department of Evolution and Ecology

    “Collaborating with graduate students is my greatest joy as a scientist. My mentoring style allows student to choose their own projects, even if these diverge greatly from my own. These projects give me the opportunity to learn new things and think about the world, and I cherish the interplay of two dedicated minds putting all their creative energies into gaining insights into nature.”
  • N.C. Luhmann, Jr.
    Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering

    “I was fortunate to have a tremendous adviser and mentor who became my lifelong friend. This instilled in me the desire to do likewise at this critical juncture and period of many changes in the life of students as they embark on professional careers and families.”
  • Rick Grosberg
    Professor, Evolution and Ecology

    “The main reason I have graduate students and postdocs is to broaden my own research perspectives, and to keep me honest and up to date. To this end, I encourage all of my students and postdocs to develop their own line of research; I have never urged a student to work on one of my research projects, and I have never put my name on a student's or postdoc’s paper simply because it was based on work done in my lab or supported by my grants.  The greatest joy of this life as a professor is knowing that it is their career, not mine, that counts in the end.”
  • Omnia El Shakry
    Associate Professor, History

    “I can think of nothing more meaningful than being nominated by the graduate scholars from whom I have learned, and continue to learn, so much. I feel incredibly fortunate to be at Davis where I have been sustained—intellectually, politically, and socially— by my work with graduate students across the disciplines.”


The five UC Davis professors will be honored alongside other award recipients at the Graduate Studies Honors and Awards Ceremony on Monday, May 22. For more information about Graduate Studies awards, visit the Graduate Studies awards page.

About Graduate Studies at UC Davis
Graduate Studies at UC Davis includes 99 dynamic degree programs and a diverse and interactive student body from around the world. Known for our state-of-the-art research facilities, productive laboratories and progressive spirit – UC Davis offers collaborative and interdisciplinary curricula through graduate groups and designated emphasis options – bringing students and faculty of different academic disciplines together to address real-world challenges.

UC Davis master’s and doctoral graduates become leaders in their fields – researchers, teachers, politicians, mentors and entrepreneurs. Graduates go on to guide, define and impact change within our global community.

For information on Graduate Studies’ current strategic initiatives, visit the Graduate Studies strategic plan page.

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