Martha Bradley-Evans awarded 2020 rosenblatt Prize for Excellence
May 8, 2020 – Martha Bradley-Evans, senior associate vice president for academic affairs and longtime friend of the Tanner Humanities Center, has been awarded the 2020 Rosenblatt Prize for Excellence.
The award, which is the University of Utah’s highest faculty recognition, is presented annually to a member of the faculty who far exceeds normal expectations in the classroom and campus community. While a committee nominates candidates for the prestigious accolade, the final decision is made by University President Ruth V. Watkins.
Martha also serves as dean of the Office of Undergraduate Studies and is a member of the Tanner Lectures Advisory Board. Her contributions to the academic and cultural life of the University are innumerable. She was the driving force behind the creation of several programs aimed at mentoring and encouraging student achievement, including: the LEAP program, the Student Success and Empowerment Initiative, and the Dream Center. Martha’s impact in the classroom has been lauded as well. As a professor in the College of Architecture+Planning, she’s previously been awarded the Distinguished Teaching Award, the Student Choice Excellence in Teaching Award and numerous others.
“Dr. Bradley-Evans is beloved on this campus by her peers and students alike and for good reason,” said President Watkins. “She has led many of our most important student initiatives, all aimed at ensuring every student has an exceptional educational experience and succeeds in their pursuit of a degree.”
Mark Matheson, who also serves on the Tanner Lectures Advisory Board, works closely with Martha, and addressed her in a congratulatory video from her Undergraduate Studies team. “You have changed the University of Utah for the better, through your dedicated work… we know in a very firsthand way what you’ve achieved through what you’ve done in undergraduate studies. We are really, really thrilled that the University got this one right, that the University is recognizing a leader that has given so much to this institution for so many years.”
Her involvement in enriching and supporting the undergraduate student experience spans decades. “I’ve worked at the University for a really long time and I’ve been so lucky to be able to have support for doing innovative programs around undergraduate education,” Martha said. “Undergraduate studies serves all undergraduates not just a certain category of students and that larger impact has been something that’s very gratifying.”
Martha has been involved with the Tanner Humanities Center for decades. “Because I’ve believed so much in the mission I’ve always been connected to it,” she said. “The way it fosters scholarship and values community built around scholarship - I think that community part of it is really important and valuable.”
On winning the esteemed Rosenblatt Prize for Excellence, Martha said, “It means a lot to win an award like that towards the end of your career. My plan is to teach as long as I can but it is kind of a culminating experience.” She continued, “I’ve liked reflecting on the kind of continuity, in terms of my values, and how those have been expressed in the things that I do. It feels like acknowledging the breadth of my career instead of just a certain moment in time.”
We join the entire U of U community in celebrating Martha, and the remarkable work she has done and continues to do. The Tanner Humanities Center is honored to work with her and can think of no one more deserving of this incredible honor. Congratulations Martha!
Click HERE to read the University’s award announcement.
Click HERE to learn more about the Rosenblatt Prize for Excellence.