Dear Colleagues, past students, and those who might want to enroll in future offerings of BENG 5613 and/or BENG/OMGT 5633
As many of you know, I (Otto J. Loewer) will be retiring in May 2020 after 57 years in some capacity in higher education at six land-grant universities and one private college. Forty-seven of those years has been as a faculty member with a broad range of assignments in teaching, research, outreach, and administration, and about 30 of those have been at the University of Arkansas at two different times of employment. I’ve valued each and every year! But, time does usher each of us in and then eventually out of the various roles we play in life, and my time to be ushered out of being a tenured professor has finally come.
Since 2010, my primary assignment has been the teaching of BENG/OMGT 5633 (Linkages among Economics, Technology, and Societal Values) and BENG 5613 (Simulation Modeling of Biological Systems). Most of the students who have taken these two courses did so through Distance Education, either through the OMGT or the MSE programs. And this has been a greatly rewarding experience, at least for me and hopefully for my students as well!
I’ve truly been both honored and blessed to serve in each of the different work assignments I’ve had over the years, and I hope that I’ve make a positive contribution to those I’ve served in each. However, in personal reflection, my time spent in teaching BENG 5613 and especially BENG/OMGT 5633 has likely been the most important professional contribution of my career.
So, this leads to the question of IF or WHEN I’ll continue to teach BENG 5613 and/or BENG/OMGT 5633 in a part-time role. The short answer is:
- BENG 5613 (Modeling): I’ve agreed to teach this course at least one more time, currently scheduled for Term 1 in 2020.
- BENG/OMGT 5633 (Linkages):
- No firm decision has yet been made regarding if or when this course will again be offered with me as the instructor.
- Certainly, it is possible that the upcoming Term 4 (2020) will be the last time that this course will be taught, at least by me, in that I’m the author of text used in the course, and the course was created based on the material in the text.
I’ll post additional information as soon as more firm decisions are made. Certainly feel free to contact me if you have additional questions.
Best regards,
Otto J. Loewer