Great instructors are at the heart of any great school, and the Indiana University Maurer School of Law was proud to recognize five of its best at the school’s annual Teaching Awards March 24.
This year’s recipients include BestLawyers’ 2022 Indianapolis Corporate Governance Law Lawyer of the Year, a beloved clinical professor and director, one of the world’s foremost authorities on the intersection of law and globalization, a top U.S. tax scholar, and a professor known for flipping homemade pancakes to students.
Professor Jeff Stake was honored with the Leon H. Wallace Teaching Award, the highest teaching recognition a faculty member can be awarded. Professors Amy Applegate, Jayanth Krishnan, and Leandra Lederman were each awarded Trustees’ Teaching Awards, and Alan Becker, partner at Bose McKinney & Evans LLP, received the Adjunct Faculty Teaching Award.
“These five instructors have demonstrated excellence in the classroom that goes above and beyond what is expected of a faculty member,” said Dean Christiana Ochoa.
Ochoa thanked Ben Bailey, Alexa Rojas, and Laura Rusk for serving as the committee that reviewed nominations, which included teaching evaluations and consulting with their colleagues in the student body.
Stake, known for sending pancakes through the air to students who answer questions correctly, was noted for his clarity in the classroom, and his care and compassion outside of it.
“In everything he does, Professor Stake demonstrates an unwavering commitment to excellence,” one nominating student wrote. “Whether it be in the classroom, in the halls, or on Zoom, he strives to be the absolute best he can be.”
Another noted Professor Stake’s interactions with his students.
“I have genuinely never seen him give a student less than his fullest attention and care in conversation,” the student wrote. “He gets to know his students and goes above and beyond to help his students achieve success.”
The Trustees’ Teaching Awards were created by the Indiana University Board of Trustees to recognize “excellent and meritorious teaching”—teaching that is demanding, effective, and creative. This year’s honorees display those traits and more, Ochoa said.
About the Trustees’ Teaching Award winners
Amy Applegate is a Clinical Professor of Law, Ralph F. Fuchs Faculty Fellow, and director of the Viola J. Taliaferro Family and Children Mediation Clinic. Applegate teaches mediation theory and practice courses, guiding students to become registered domestic relations mediators in Indiana. She received Trustees’ Teaching Awards in 2012 and 2016.
Jayanth Krishnan is the Milt and Judi Stewart Professor of Law and director of the Milt and Judi Stewart Center on the Global Legal Profession. He teaches courses in immigration law, property law, the legal profession, and comparative legal systems. He earned a Trustees’ Teaching Award in 2012 and was the recipient of the Wallace Teaching Award in 2015.
Leandra Lederman is the William W. Oliver Professor of Tax Law and director of the Law School’s 15th-ranked Tax Program, according to U.S. News & Report. She has consistently been recognized as one of the country’s top 10 most frequently cited tax scholars since 2005. She previously received a Trustees’ Teaching Award in 2009, and the Wallace Teaching Award in 2012.
About the Adjunct Faculty Teaching Award recipient
Alan Becker is a partner in the Business Services and Public Offerings and Securities Regulation Groups at Bose McKinney & Evans LLP, assisting clients with many types of corporate and financial transactions, including forming business entities and structuring their ownership arrangements, raising capital from third parties, and buying, selling and combining businesses. He also assists clients with women-owned and minority-owned business certifications.