University of Missouri

April 4, 2024
Contact: Courtney Perrett, 573-882-6217, cperrett@missouri.edu
Photos by Abbie Lankitus

Celebrating the success and dedication of University of Missouri faculty, The MU Faculty Council recently announced its 2023-24 Shared Governance Awards. The awards recognize the individuals and groups who continue to show their commitment to excellence in shared governance on our campus.

“The annual shared governance award is in recognition of the people and groups that help give faculty a platform they wouldn’t otherwise have,” said faculty council chairman Tom Warhover. “Both Dr. Leary and the MU Extension faculty have done a terrific job of navigating shared governance and stepping up in ways that have opened doors for their faculty members to have a voice at the university level.”

This year’s recipients are:

Emily Leary

Emily Leary is an assistant professor and Director of Biostatistics in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery.

In her nomination, Leary was recognized as someone who demonstrates excellence in service and leadership while fostering an inclusive and collaborative environment. An example of that is her work to proactively raise the visibility of the Faculty Affairs Council within the School of Medicine, reinforcing the value of faculty involvement in decision-making and encouraging accountability and transparency among her colleagues.

“Dr. Leary is an excellent advocate for the faculty in the School of Medicine and a model of a faculty member’s duty in shared governance,” one nomination read.

MU Extension Faculty

The MU Extension faculty was recognized as this year’s group award winner. The award was accepted by Todd Lorenz, a regional field specialist in agronomy, on behalf of the group.

For more than two years, the Extension faculty fought to be represented as full members of the Faculty Council. In Spring 2023, the Board of Curators approved changes to add all ranked faculty, including Extension professionals, to the formal definition of faculty. This change now allows the contributions of field faculty who live and work across the state to be recognized and represented equally.

The nomination letter specifically highlighted Lorenz for his instrumental role in facilitating this change. The nomination stated, “The MU Extension Field Faculty that Dr. Todd Lorenz represented will forever be grateful for finally being recognized as part of the MU campus as faculty.”