CBU honors Distinguished Professor, Scholar and Employee of the Year

Riverside, Calif. (May 11, 2022) – California Baptist University honored two outstanding faculty members and the 2022 Employee of the Year on May 5 during the annual faculty and staff awards banquet.

The CBU Board of Trustees each year selects the Distinguished Professor and Distinguished Scholar award recipients.

Dirk Dallas, assistant professor of graphic design, was named the Distinguished Professor, given to a faculty member who has established an impressive record of service to CBU. 

Dallas is also the program lead for graphic design and visual experience in the College of Architecture, Visual Arts and Design (CAVAD).

Mark Roberson, founding dean of CAVAD, said Dallas accomplishes more in any given year than seems humanly possible.

“Dirk's scholarly and creative endeavors are at the very highest levels of his profession,” Roberson said. “His service to the university, community and profession exceeds expectations.”

Since Dallas has taken the role of program lead, the program has flourished under his leadership. Students in the program won a record number of national awards in 2021, and the program curriculum has grown to help students prepare for their careers.

Dr. Yeesock Kim, professor of civil engineering and construction management in the Gordon and Jill Bourns College of Engineering, was named Distinguished Scholar. Kim was honored for a research project titled “Artificial Intelligence for Motion Tracking Cancer Cells Under Complex External Stimulus.” The project, funded by the National Institutes of Health, developed A.I. models to characterize cancer cell movements.

To help with the collection of a variety of cancer data sets in the Harvard Medical School, Kim developed a new A.I. computer model. The model has a positive impact because it can be a therapeutic target for cancerous growths.

“This project typifies the kind of scholarly research that this award is intended to recognize,” Dr. Ronald L. Ellis, CBU president, said.

Brittany Davies, director of academic operations for the College of Health Science, received the 2022 Employee of the Year award. CBU’s Executive Council selected the Employee of the Year recipient from among the staff members chosen as Employee of the Month during the academic year. Any CBU employee may submit a nomination for Employee of the Month to that nominee’s supervisor.

“Brittany serves as a great model for the full-time staff, interns and student workers under her supervision,” Dr. David Pearson, dean of the College of Health Science, said. “She is motivating to everyone else around her, especially me, because she takes such great pride in her work.”

In total, 166 employees received service awards this year for combined service to CBU totaling 1,390 years. That includes 91 who marked five years of service each, 50 employees who received 10-year service pins, 18 employees recognized for 15 years of service, two for 20 years and five who received 25 years of service recognition.