Chancellor Victor Boschini awarded David R. Cross, associate director of the TCU Institute of Child Development, the Chancellor's Award for Distinguished Achievement as a Creative Teacher and Scholar at the 2012 fall Convocation and Founder's Day Celebration on Tuesday morning.
Every year, the winner of the Chancellor's Award has their picture displayed in the Mary Couts Burnett Library and receives a cash prize of $20,000, courtesy of an anonymous donor.
Read by Boschini, a former student said Cross had a welcoming yet challenging approach, allowing students to be hands-on in field work, research and applying their knowledge into real problems.
"The work of this year's recipient has epitomized the teacher-scholar model and has had a tremendous effect on people of all walks of life," Boschini said of Cross. "This professor's professional record expands well beyond the traditional confines of academia.
Today's winner has been engaged in an array of mentoring and outreach activities that have transformed and helped others raise their children and led to significant advances in understanding and improving the dynamics within families with at-risk children," Boschini said.
The Wassenich Award for Mentoring in the TCU community was presented to Christopher R. Watts, chair of the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders. Watts would receive a $1,000 prize and the Wassenich Founder's Medal.
"It's always my pleasure to present this award because I think it highlights one of the most intricate parts of the TCU community," Boschini said during the convocation. "Mentoring is a defining characteristic of Texas Christian University."
Other awards included recipients of School and College Awards for Distinguished Achievement as a Creative Teacher and Scholar, an acknowledgement given to, according to Provost Nowell Donovan, a faculty member in each of the major academic divisions of TCU to recognize outstanding educational work.
Along with Cross, the 2012 winners were Jesus Castro-Balbi, John Harvey, Suzanne Lockwood, Mary Stanford, Karen Steele, Russell Dalton and Paul Witt. These recipients were automatically nominated for the Chancellor's Award and received $1,000.
"They are all winners," Boschini said. "To even make it to this point is a tremendous accomplishment."
The Fall Convocation also featured a mix of nine TCU students and staff in open panel discussion.
The nine panelists were Roseangela Boyd, Phil Hartman, Linda Hughes, Rhonda Keen, Mike Marshall, Sue McClellan, Austin Minor, Vanessa Norris and Greg Stephens.
Reverend Angela Kaufman and student body president Brent Folan were also in attendance at Ed Landreth Auditorium.
"It was quite an honor being on stage with all of them, especially representing all of the students that they impact on a daily basis," Folan said after the convocation concluded. "The TCU faculty and staff members on stage all deserve the recognition for making TCU the best university in the nation."
Editors Note: This article was updated to add a recipient to the School and College Awards for Distinguished Achievement as a Creative Teacher and Scholar. Russell Dalton was left off the list in the orginal version of the story.