Joseph Vetro, PhD, will be the recipient of the Outstanding Teacher Award during the UNMC Faculty Senate annual meeting on April 15. The award recognizes faculty who exemplify excellence as a director of learning, advisor of students, facilitator of human relations and/or promoter of the improvement of educational quality at UNMC.
- Name: Joseph Vetro, PhD
- Title at UNMC: Associate professor in the UNMC Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences
- Joined UNMC: 2004
- Hometown: Omaha
What are the greatest rewards of teaching?
Being able to provide conceptual frameworks that encourage students to move from passively absorbing lecture materials to actively curating information that builds the intellectual independence to grow and excel in their profession.
Describe a moment in your career when you realized you had picked the right occupation.
The day I realized that I get paid to solve problems.
What are the biggest challenges you face as a teacher?
Getting students to take a more active role in their education while they are overloaded with information and under constant pressure to get good grades
How do you know when you’ve been successful as a teacher?
When students begin questioning the relevance, validity and limitations of what they are being taught and realize that information is constantly evolving.