FORT WORTH, Texas (Jan. 17, 2013) Tarrant County College South Campus Associate Professor of Biology Paul D. Luyster has been named one of 30 finalists for the Community College Futures Assembly (CCFA) annual Bellwether Award. Nominated in the Instructional Programs and Services category, Luyster was selected for his creative design and successful implementation of a program titled “Innovations in Bioscience Courses to Improve Student Success Without Sacrificing Rigor.” Ten finalists were chosen in three categories: Instructional Programs and Services; Planning, Governance and Finance; and Workforce Development. Nearly 250 Bellwether applications responded to CCFA’s call for nominations in fall 2012. Luyster and other finalists will present at the CCFA national assembly Jan. 28 in Orlando, Fla. One winner will be selected from each category by a panel of national experts and will be announced Jan. 30 during the annual meeting. Since joining TCC in 2004, Luyster has been nominated for the 2010 Chancellor’s Award for Exemplary Teaching-the highest teaching award at TCC-and he received a Teaching Excellence Award from the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development in 2011. Serving on the Biological Sciences faculty, Luyster has consistently supported student engagement in academically meaningful activities by forming study groups, creating peer networks, and advising student organizations. He helped develop and continues to sponsor the South Campus Health Science Club for pre-Allied Health and Nursing students. Thanks to his mentoring, two Health Science Club students were recently accepted into the highly competitive paid summer research internship at the University of North Texas. Luyster participates in Faculty Senate, TCC’s Achieving the Dream initiative, and makes presentations to both student and faculty groups. A certified personal fitness trainer, he has written a character education curriculum used in several high schools. He spoke at the National Dropout Prevention Conference for At-Risk Students for three consecutive years and has been a ropes course facilitator, certified through Project Adventure. Media Contact: 817-515-5212
