Nada Tamim, director of undergraduate programs for the Department of Animal and Poultry Sciences in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, has received the university’s 2016 Alumni Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Academic Advising.

Established by the Virginia Tech Alumni Association, the Alumni Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Academic Advising is presented annually by the Office of the Provost to a Virginia Tech faculty member who has been particularly dedicated and effective while advising undergraduate students. Recipients may be nominated by university colleagues or students, are selected by a committee of former award winners, receive a $2,000 prize, and are inducted into the university’s Academy of Advising Excellence.

“Nada Tamim is an outstanding and gifted undergraduate advisor,” wrote David Gerrard, professor and head of the Department of Animal and Poultry Sciences. “She has a commitment to excellence and expects her advisees to adopt this approach to education. Through our undergraduate advising office, the classroom and a number of informal settings, Nada exudes a positive attitude and helps students reach their dreams.”

Tamim leads the advising office of nearly 600 undergraduate students. She believes in fostering strong relationships with students, adhering to an open door policy, providing reliable information, and offering realistic and sensible advice.

Colleagues noted that Tamim is rarely in her office alone because so many students seek her out for advice.

“Her investment in the success and overall happiness of her students is clear as a professor and as an advisor, taking the time to learn the names of students she’s never interacted with and most importantly introducing students to others who share similar interests,” wrote Dillon Didehvar, an animal and poultry sciences student, in a letter of nomination.

She earned her bachelor’s degree and master’s degree from American University of Beirut and her Ph.D. from the University of Maryland.

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