Fabian Fagerholm (left) and Arto Vihavainen
At the department’s Christmas coffee on 17 December 2013, the certificates of honour were awarded for a senior and junior instructor, for two junior researchers, and the employee of the year. In addition to the certificate, they received a monetary award.
The prize for senior instructor was awarded to Fabian Fagerholm, Master of Science.
Being a good instructor does not necessarily involve the traditional course model with lectures and exercises. Good instruction is first and foremost built on support for learning. Fabian has been a developer of the Software Factory concept from the start, and he has been the midwife building up the practical work of the Software Factory. It is thanks to him that students receive a full and individual learning experience in the Factory, leading to deeper learning. Fabian has an amazing ability to motivate and support students, while being a very demanding instructor at the same time. He helps the students grow.
The certificate for junior instructor was awarded to Emilia Hjelm, Bachelor of Science.
Emilia has proven to be an excellent and popular instructor who creates a good ambience. Her teaching has an exceptional range, as she has developed wholly new instruction practices at the department. Emilia has had a pivotal role in bringing future computer scientists to study and visit at the department. She has been open-minded in building up activities for children, young people and school teachers via school visits, remedial education, clubs, and camps.
Two researchers were honoured in the junior category
Eemil Lagerspetz, Master of Science
Eemil Lagerspetz has made good progress in his postgraduate work, and has published a total of 17 refereed articles. He has held a central role in the Carat project in cooperation with University of California, Berkeley; the project has garnered interest internationally, both in and outside the academic community.
Arto Vihavainen, Master of Science
Arto Vihavainen has been very productive in his scientific work. In the years 2011-2013, he has co-authored 16 articles, most of them as the principal author. The articles have been published at quality conferences in the field, and two of them have been awarded the prize for best article.
Staff member of the year is Yi Ding (Aaron), Master of Science
He is a most positive and supportive person with a strong sense of responsibility for the community. He initiates actions and follows them through, always thinking of the best for the community. He has worked hard and successfully on the wellbeing and integration of the international staff, especially making and maintaining the international CS blog and Frequently Asked Question (FAQ) for foreigners.