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(from left) Provost Lane Earns, Prof. John Strous and student Amanda Burch pose for a picture shortly after Strous received the fall 2013 UW Oshkosh Faculty/Instructional Academic Staff advisor award.

For Amanda Burch, faculty academic adviser John Strous is a key guide and mentor on her journey toward a degree in medical technology.

“John and I — we’re like two peas in a pod,” said Burch, who, after a clinical internship next July, aims to graduate in spring 2015 from the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh.

Burch was part of a faculty-and-student duo that nominated Strous, from the department of Medical Technology in the College of Letters and Science, for the fall 2013 UW Oshkosh Faculty/Instructional Academic Staff Advisor Award. Burch’s and Geology Department chair Bill Mode’s nominations helped Strous earn the honor, which he was awarded with on Dec. 2.

“This is the least I can do to repay him,” Burch said.

UW Oshkosh Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Lane Earns presented Strous with the award on Dec. 2. The honor comes with a $100 Chamber gift certificate and copies of the nomination letters.

The award, created in 2012 and first bestowed in January this year, recognizes and honors commitment and excellence in faculty advising. The Advisory Council for Comprehensive Academic Advising selects the winners based on the nominations from faculty, staff and students. Three UW Oshkosh faculty and instructional academic staff members have received the award since it was created.

See Strous as he is presented the award in this video…

[youtube height=”HEIGHT” width=”WIDTH”]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MgWRGjpruQ&feature=youtu.be” frameborder=”0″ allow=”autoplay; encrypted-media” allowfullscreen>

 

In his nomination letter, Mode lauded Strous’ deep commitment to advising students throughout the spans of their educational journeys at UW Oshkosh.

“He spends a great deal of time advising and thinking about advising, and works closely with faculty, department chairs and administrators to ensure that his students’ progress toward their degrees is smooth and not delayed by institutional impediments,” Mode states.

“John’s advising begins when high school students who may or may not know that they are prospective medical technology majors first visit UW Oshkosh on Preview Day,” Mode states. “Many talk with him and take the tour of his facilities. He continues to educate students about his program by participating in spring and summer ‘Odyssey: The Beginning’ when students register for their first-semester classes. Once his majors arrive on campus, they are required to meet with him at least once per semester for advising. He advises every one of the nearly 100 medical technology majors every semester.”

Mode also praised Strous for going above and beyond in balancing his commitments to teaching, advising and internship-guidance. In summers, he drives students throughout Wisconsin to introduce them to potential medical-technology internship hospital sites. Mode said Strous has also stayed connected with graduates and helped them lock jobs that lead to rewarding careers.

“He works with them to find that first job and stays in touch with them throughout their careers,” Mode states.

In her letter nominating Strous, Burch cited his critical guidance as she calibrated her academic plan and began pursuit of her now-planned medical-technician clinical experience.

“John’s knowledge regarding the curriculum and available courses allowed me to save time and money by fulfilling more than one requirement with one course,” Burch states.

“As I have moved on to the next phase of the Medical Technology Program with the acceptance of a clinical internship, it is safe to say that I am where I am today because of John Strous,” she sates. “Aside from being someone I seek to make a schedule change or discuss the status of my grades, John has been and continues to be an invaluable mentor.”

 

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