An Indian-American professor of environmental science in a prestigious US university received an award from the President Barack Obama on Thursday for excellence in mentoring.
Kenneth Sajwan, professor in the Department of Natural Science and Mathematics at the Savannah State University in Georgia, was the only Indian American in the list of 22 eminent teachers from across the country to have received Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring.
The Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring, awarded each year to individuals or organisations, recognises the crucial role that mentoring plays in the academic and personal development of students studying science or engineering and who belong to minorities that are underrepresented in those fields.
By offering their time, encouragement and expertise to these students, mentors help ensure that the next generation of scientists and engineers will better reflect the diversity of the United States, the White House said.
Sajwan is nationally recognised as a leading scholar and researcher in the field of environmental science. His works have been published in more than 100 publications. In addition to being honoured at the White House, recipients receive awards of $10,000 to advance their mentoring efforts.
Candidates for the Presidential Mentoring Award are nominated by colleagues, administrators, and students from their home institutions. The mentoring can involve students at any grade level from elementary through graduate school.
Prior to joining Savannah State University in 1992, he served as an assistant professor at the University of Georgia's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory. His previous work includes postdoctoral associateships at the University of Kentucky and the University of Wisconsin.
Sajwan received a Bachelor of Science degree in agriculture and animal husbandry (1972) from Pant University Agriculture and Technology, and a Master of Science degree in agronomy (1975) from J N Agricultural University.
He earned a doctoral degree in Post Harvest Technology from Indian Institute of Technology (1980) and another doctoral degree in agronomy and environmental quality from Colorado State University (1985).
