Dr. Roger Gilchrist is one of 12 UAB faculty members selected to receive the 2017 President’s Award for Excellence in Teaching, which honors those who have demonstrated exceptional accomplishments in teaching. The honorees represent each school, the College of Arts and Sciences, the Honors College, and the Joint Health Sciences departments. Recipients were recognized during the annual Faculty Convocation on September 19 at the UAB Alumni House.

Dr. Roger Gilchrist, an associate professor of biology, has been at UAB for nearly two decades. During that time, he has earned a reputation for being a patient, accessible, and exemplary professor, and students say he has a well-rounded teaching style that encourages students to challenge themselves and truly learn and understand the material. Gilchrist is well-known for making time for his students and often can be found helping a student. “Often there is a line of students in the hallway waiting their turn,” one colleague wrote. Gilchrist is dedicated to providing quality programs and courses; he chairs the CAS Curriculum and Education Policy committee and also developed and continues to teach BY 216: Introduction to Human Pathophysiology, which is unique to UAB.

The Department of Biology has a long-standing history with the President’s Award for Excellence in Teaching. Dr. Gilchrist is the department’s sixth recipient, preceded by Dr. Anne Cusic (1995 and 2005), Dr. Thane Wibbels (2001), Dr. Stephen Watts (2006), Dr. Doug Watson (2010), and Dr. Asim Bej (2014).