The College of Engineering recognizes teaching excellence at the department level with Excellence in Teaching Awards. Awards are presented annually to one faculty member and one graduate student teaching assistant in each department for their strong commitment to the educational mission and vision of the college. Awardees consistently exceed expectations in teaching and mentoring the next generation of engineers and leaders.

This year, Professor Francis Assadian, from the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department, is the recipient of the 2024 Teaching Excellence Award.

Photo by Jose Velazquez

By Elizabeth Thomson

Jose Velazquez was eight years old when he moved to the United States from Mexico. He has gone on to become the first in his immediate family to graduate from college, going on to earn a Ph.D. in mechanical and aeronautical engineering from UC Davis in 2017. Always obsessed with cars, he is now an engineer at Ford. The holder of seven pending patents, in May 2018 he was awarded Ford’s Controls Engineering Chief Engineer’s Award for outstanding on-the-job performance.