OSU professor to be honored for excellence in teaching

Monday, March 5, 2018

Oklahoma State University’s Dr. Tyler Ley has been selected to receive the Medal of Excellence in Teaching at a Research University from the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence. 

“This is a great honor for me,” said Ley, professor of civil engineering and the Gilbert, Cooper, W&W Steel Chair. “Teaching is something that I enjoy so much, and I know that this award brings great honor to OSU.” 

During his 10 years of teaching at OSU, Ley has earned top ratings from students for his creativity and passion. 

Ley teaches by verbally, graphically and kinetically helping students grasp the concepts. He starts by using stories that involve important engineering milestones to introduce a topic with a human connection. He then presents data with graphs and tables to illustrate the topic analytically. He also uses simple experiments to demonstrate the concept in action. 

“I like making students excited about the subject,” Ley said. “It makes the concepts stick. When someone is excited about a project or concept, they are more likely to use and remember it.”  

In 2012, Ley started an after-school program “Engineering is Everything,” to promote engineering for future generations, beginning with Stillwater fifth-graders. Partnering with OSU’s education department, he developed hands-on curriculum and videos, which he shares with students each year through his website www.engineeringiseverywhere.com. 

Ley said his 17 years of practical experience in structural and concrete materials engineering has made him a better teacher and researcher. 

“The best teachers are great learners,” Ley said. “I am always consuming information about my field and making it easier for others to understand.” 

As a winner of the Medal of Excellence, Ley and other honorees will receive a $5,000 cash prize and a glass “Roots and Wings” sculpture at the Academic Awards Banquet on May 19. The sculpture was designed by the late Oklahoma artist Ron Roberts and produced by Tim Brown of Edmond.  

Ley is an active member of the American Concrete Institute and a voting member of its concrete durability, material science, concrete proportioning, and sustainability technical committees. He is also a member of the executive committee of the National Concrete Consortium and served as president of the American Ceramics Society Cements Division in 2016. 

Ley earned a bachelor’s in civil engineering from Oklahoma State University. He received his master’s and doctoral degrees in civil engineering from the University of Texas in Austin. 

The Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence is a non-profit organization that recognizes and encourages academic excellence in the state’s public schools. The Academic Awards Banquet is open to the public, with tickets priced at $50.

To learn more about the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence, visit http://www.ofe.org/.