Hugo Cota-Sánchez wins Master Teacher Award

Since joining the Department of Biology in 2000, Hugo Cota-Sánchez has earned a reputation as one of the University of Saskatchewan's most esteemed teacher-scholars. Although many of the concepts he teaches are highly technical, Cota-Sánchez employs interactive and engaging teaching methods to make the subject matter less intimidating. For example, one of his undergraduate classes is taken annually on a “supermarket safari,” where students travel to a grocery store and learn how various foods and cosmetic products are inextricably connected to plants. Cota-Sánchez has also designed a suit made entirely of burlap that he will often wear during class to demonstrate the versatility of plants.

As curator of the W.P. Fraser Herbarium on campus, Cota-Sánchez also leads many outreach initiatives that introduce a wide range of students to the world of botany. For example, he regularly conducts tours of the herbarium for elementary and secondary school students, and also frequently acts as a guide for Saskatchewan Polytechnic students who are visiting campus during field trips.

While Cota-Sánchez’s classes can be large, he makes a point to know each student by name. He is engaging and genuine in a way that many teachers strive to be, yet few can truly achieve. This ability to connect with students, and his belief that teachers must consistently assess and adjust their teaching methods, is annually reflected in his student evaluation scores, which are consistently excellent. As one student noted in a 2010 evaluation form, “Hugo is by far the best professor I’ve ever had. … He loves his subject so much and that is a big influence on how he teaches. … Hugo sets a high standard for any prof to live up to. His attitude and positive energy keep the class interesting and fun.”

For his exceptional work in the classroom, Cota-Sánchez has won numerous teaching honours in addition to the Master Teacher Award. Namely, he twice received the College of Arts and Science’s Teaching Excellence Award (2006, 2014), a Provost’s Award for Outstanding Teaching (2015), and a USSU Teaching Excellence Award (2003). He also won a Teaching Excellence Award from his previous employer, Iowa State University, in 1997.

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