Rusty May Named 2007 Teacher of the Year
Writer: Sheila Roberson, 706-542-5303, roberson@rx.uga.edu
Contact: Russell May, 706/721-6492, jmay@mail.mcg.edu
Date: February 16, 2007
"I absolutely enjoy teaching and being around students, both in the classroom and during pharmacy student clerkships,"
said Dr. Russell "Rusty" May, a clinical professor at the University of Georgia College of Pharmacy, who has been named its
2007 Teacher of the Year. "I love creating the lectures and deciding what the students need to know and what I think will
be useful to them in their practice, regardless of the type of practice they pursue.
"That's what's so interesting about what I teach; the three courses that involve drug information will always be useful and won't go out of date," he added. "And many management principles are useful at work and in our personal life."
May has been an adjunct professor with the College of Pharmacy since 1981 when he joined the faculty at the Medical College of Georgia and also began teaching in the College's Clinical Pharmacy Program in Augusta.
"UGA was just beginning the Doctor of Pharmacy program then and I was able to develop the drug information course. I really liked having that blank piece of paper to work with in any way I wanted," said May, who became a full-time faculty member in the College's Department of Clinical and Administrative Pharmacy in 2005.
Being enthusiastic plays a big part in his teaching philosophy, he said, and that word appears most often on his student evaluations. "Drug information and pharmacy management aren't the most entertaining courses, but they're very important, and few students actually like statistics," said May, adding that at the beginning of each lecture, he always tells the students why the information is important and how they will use it. He tries to illustrate each lecture with stories and examples that will bring dry material to life.
I've had more than one student say they didn't enjoy the lecture material but appreciated my enthusiasm and learned something from the class," he said.
May appreciates the challenge of teaching pharmacy students, noting that the competition to get into pharmacy school has produced an elite student body with high grade point averages and test scores. "It's more challenging and more demanding for faculty; that just comes naturally," he said. "I'm really excited about receiving the Teacher of the Year award. It validates my approach to teaching and what I've always believed in."
May's award consists of a $1,000 gift, a permanent $1,000 salary increase and the opportunity to represent the College at the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy annual meeting.