April 13, 2020
Contact: Pate McCuien, 573-882-4870, McCuienp@Missouri.edu
The Southeastern Conference announced today that University of Missouri Professor of Atmospheric Sciences Anthony Lupo won the SEC’s 2020 Faculty Achievement Award. The recognition is given out to one faculty member from each school once a year. The SEC then awards one of those candidates as SEC professor of the year.
Lupo received a doctorate in atmospheric science from the University of Purdue in 1995. He had many connections to Mizzou through his professors at Purdue and enjoyed many of the similarities between the two campuses, so he applied for an assistant professor
position at the University of Missouri hoping to move back into the Midwest. In 1997, he accepted an assistant professor position at MU.
“Missouri, of course, is an AAU institution. Those are looked at as some of the best,” Lupo said. “So, I was just pleased to get into this university early in my career.”
MU Professor Anthony Lupo says he is proud to have been part of such an outstanding faculty for 22 years.
Now, throughout the span of 22 years, the then assistant professor rose through the ranks, becoming a full professor and eventually winning an SEC Faculty Achievement Award. He says it is a humbling experience.
“There are so many quality professors and researchers across the University,” Lupo said. “We have won a Nobel Peace Prize winner in our faculty, and many have been named American Association for the Advancement of Science and National Academy fellows. Mizzou is in the major leagues when it comes to university faculties, so winning this award here is a huge honor.”
Lupo keeps his lectures fast paced and engaging through the use of humor and an exciting amount of energy. He keeps his students involved by asking them to connect the current topic to other topics they have discussed. Through these tactics, Lupo hopes his students know that they can come to him if they need anything.
“I want to always maintain a professional demeanor in the classroom, but at the same time, I want to let them know that I am approachable,” said Lupo. “They’re in the same place I was 30 to 35 years ago. I want them to know that I’m here for them because they will feel less inhibited to ask questions and visit with me if they need help. I really want the students who are struggling to take advantage of office hours and other opportunities like that.”
Lupo has made waves throughout the country on behalf of Mizzou. Whether it has been his work on climate variability and jet stream dynamics research or his work in the classroom, he is motivated by his competitive nature. Lupo says that he is always pushing himself to be better than he was the semester prior. University of Missouri Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor Latha Ramchand is impressed with the progress Lupo has made as both a researcher and a professor.
“Dr. Lupo is a scholar and a teacher who is enthusiastic about his work and the ways in which we can connect our research to our public mission to serve,” Ramchand said. “During his more than 20-year tenure at Mizzou, he has engaged in significant service and outreach for the university, for organizations abroad and for the entire meteorological scientific community. Further, he serves as mentor and brings a spirit of collaboration to every one of his classrooms.”
SEC Faculty Achievement Award winners each receive a $5,000 honorarium. Lupo is the tenth faculty award winner announced this year. Once every winner is announced, the SEC will reveal the winner of their SEC Professor of the Year Award.
More about the prestigious award can be found here.
