DISTINGUISHED TEACHING PROFESSOR NEIL H. RINGLER FROM SUNY RECEIVES AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN FISHERIES EDUCATION FROM THE AMERICAN FISHERIES SOCIETY

(Atlantic City, NJ) August 21, 2018 – Neil H. Ringler received the award for Excellence in Fisheries Education at the 2018 American Fisheries Society (AFS) Annual Meeting in Atlantic City, New Jersey. AFS President Steve L. McMullin presented the award at the meeting’s plenary session. The Excellence in Fisheries Education award recognizes excellence in organized teaching and advising in the field of fisheries.

“We applaud the distinguished contributions of Mr. Ringler and thank him for his continuous efforts to share the value of fisheries through teaching,” said AFS President Steve L. McMullin.

Dr. Ringler is the Vice Provost and Executive Director of the Onondaga Lake Science Center and a SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor in the College of Environmental Science and Forestry at the State University of New York, where he has been a faculty member since 1975.

Despite his wide range of responsibilities, Dr. Ringler continues to teach and mentor graduate students because it keeps him close to the work he loves. He always has helpful feedback on ideas and problems, and has been particularly insistent in encouraging students to share their own reflections and knowledge first before offering an opinion. As such, he is training students to be well-read, independent thinkers, which is one of the best lessons any student can learn.

He pushes students to be driven by curiosity, and his approach to advising boosts confidence for designing creative studies, developing well-informed hypotheses, trusting one’s knowledge, and leading one’s own research. Dr. Ringler sets high expectations and expects his students and advisees to put in the work.

In his courses, he develops challenging and interesting exercises and lessons. His enthusiasm for teaching is apparent throughout every course; he engages students by sharing his love of aquatic insects, and evaluates progress in ways that are straightforward and fair. He exudes enthusiasm for fisheries and science in general, and his classes included hands-on, real-world experiences.

The end result is that he keeps students’ interest during the entire course, which is difficult for courses based on taxonomy and anatomy. His energy, caring, and enthusiastic approach to mentoring and teaching students has enriched not only their learning experience, but more broadly their lives as well.

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Editor’s Notes:

Founded in 1870, the American Fisheries Society (AFS) is the world’s oldest and largest fisheries science society. The mission of AFS is to improve the conservation and sustainability of fishery resources and aquatic ecosystems by advancing fisheries and aquatic science and promoting the development of fisheries professionals. With five journals and numerous books and conferences, AFS is the leading source of fisheries science and management information in North America and around the world.

General link: fisheries.org

Link to AFS Annual Meeting: afsannualmeeting.fisheries.org