February 2, 2021
Aleksan Shanoyan receives one of USDA's most prestigious awards
Aleksan Shanoyan is a recipient of a regional U.S. Department of Agriculture Excellence in College and University Teaching Awards for Food and Agricultural Sciences, one of USDA's most prestigious awards.
In announcing award winners, Association of Public and Land-grant Universities President Peter McPherson acknowledged the unprecedented challenges experienced by faculty in 2020. McPherson wrote, "While facing the pandemic, faculty were forced into rapidly changing and evolving teaching, research and outreach strategies. This year's winners exemplify adaptability — they allow institutions to build resilience and embrace innovative approaches to reaching students and society."
An associate professor for K-State's agricultural economics department since 2012, Shanoyan teaches courses in agribusiness economics and management to undergraduate and graduate students where he combines real-world problem-based learning activities with computer-aided real-time learning assessment tools.
Outside the classroom, Shanoyan's dedication to student success is reflected in his involvement in a wide range of advising and extracurricular activities. He serves as a co-advisor of Agricultural Economics Club, has advised student research projects for the Center for Risk Management Education and Research, served as a mentor for undergraduate students in the K-State Research and Extension Multicultural Summer Research Fellowship program, advises K-State Agricultural Economics Graduate Student Case Study Competition teams, serves as an academic advisor to undergraduate students and supervises graduate student thesis and dissertation research.
Shanoyan is also actively involved in research on teaching and learning and is a frequently invited contributor to teaching workshops and mentoring programs organized by university and professional associations. He has received numerous teaching awards, including the 2016 Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award, Less Than Ten Years' Experience from the Western Agricultural Economics Association, and 2017 Distinguished Teaching Award: Less Than Ten Years' Experience from the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
Shanoyan earned a bachelor's degree in economics and accounting from the Armenian Agricultural Academy, a master's degree in agricultural economics from the University of Illinois, and a doctorate in agricultural, food and resource economics from Michigan State University.