Three Wartburg College faculty-staff members are recipients of annual awards determined by a vote of students.

Dr. Ed Westen, associate professor of biology, received the 2013 John O. Chellevold Award for Excellence in Teaching and Professional Service, while Dr. Roberta Bodensteiner, professor of education, won the Outstanding Academic Advisor Award.

Admissions counselor Mallory Luensmann was named Outstanding Staff Person of the Year.

Westen said he is gratified by the affirmation that he’s “doing a good job.”

“I’ve always admired people who demonstrate consistent excellence over a long period of time,” he said. “If my SRIs (Student Ratings of Instruction) or nominations for awards or whatever indicate that I am doing that, then I would be very satisfied even if I never actually won any award.”

Jeremy Corbett, a senior biology major from Cedar Rapids cited Westen’s quest for excellence in nominating him for the award.

“As an aspiring professor, I definitely look up to him and am taking mental notes on his teaching style,” Corbett said. “Hopefully, I can be as good as he is—a true professor well deserving of this award.”

Bodensteiner said she felt humbled to receive the Outstanding Academic Advisor Award and appreciative of many of the students she with whom she works.

“It is not hard to advise students who are responsible for their own academic plans,” she said.

Cassie Brook, a senior from Owatonna, Minn., majoring in child life studies, and Ashley Freese, a senior from Cedar Rapids majoring in elementary education, both nominated Bodensteiner.

“She goes above and beyond what an adviser’s job entails,” Brooks said. “She shows concern for each and every student she works with, and I have experienced that firsthand.”

“Dr. Bodensteiner is one of the most compassionate professors I have ever met,” Freese added. “She has constantly provided support and encouragement throughout my time here at Wartburg.”

Luensmann, a 2007 Wartburg graduate, said, “I am truly honored and humbled to receive this award. I really love Wartburg and being able to work with students every day. To know that they see how passionate I am about my job and Wartburg is amazing.”

Victoria Soat, a freshman business administration major from Hanover, Ill., nominated Luensmann.

“She has made me a more open person,” said Soat, a Wartburg Ambassador who gives campus tours and works with prospective students under Luensmann’s direction. “She is always giving great advice on how to interact, and that has strongly influenced.”

The awards were presented during a special ceremony April 11.