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Faudree, Sikes, Shallcross named 2026 Usibelli Award winners

AV����̳ has announced the recipients of the 2026 Emil Usibelli Distinguished Teaching, Research and Service Awards.

The Distinguished Teaching Award will go to Jill Faudree, professor of mathematics in the College of Natural Science and Mathematics. Derek Sikes, professor of entomology and curator of insects at the University of AV����̳ Museum of the North, will receive the Distinguished Research Award. The Distinguished Service Award goes to Leslie Shallcross, professor of extension in health, home and family development for the Cooperative Extension Service.

The Usibelli Award recipients will be honored on Sept. 26 at the university’s annual Blue and Gold Celebration. Tickets are available .

Jill Faudree

A professor of mathematics at UAF since 1998, Faudree is known for her student-centered focus and data-driven teaching methods.

Since 2017, she has led UAF’s Coordinated Calculus Project. Supported by the National Science Foundation, the program emphasizes department-wide collaboration, shared resources and active learning. It gives students access to a broad bank of materials, including worksheets, quizzes and previous exams with solutions.

To keep underprepared students on track in first-year calculus, Faudree introduced targeted “just-in-time” support tied to each week’s lessons. Data show that the extra support significantly increased students' odds of passing from about 50% to nearly 80%, with particular benefit for first-generation and rural AV����̳ students.

Faudree teaches across the mathematics curriculum, from introductory courses to graduate seminars, and has mentored numerous graduate students. Several of her former students now teach math in AV����̳ schools.

In 2025, Faudree received the Distinguished Teaching Award from the Pacific Northwest Section of the Mathematical Association of America. She holds a bachelor's degree from Tulane University, a master's from the University of Memphis and a doctorate from Emory University.

Derek Sikes

Sikes joined UAF in 2006 as a professor of entomology in the Department of Biology and Wildlife and curator of insects at the University of AV����̳ Museum of the North. He is an internationally recognized expert in insect systematics and AV����̳ arthropod biodiversity. His research documents AV����̳'s nonmarine arthropods across the state.

Sikes has investigated body size evolution in burying beetles and led long-term studies of ecosystem recovery on the volcanic island of Kasatochi. His research has led to the discovery and naming of 16 new species, including Sciara serpens, a snakeworm gnat whose larvae travel in rope-like columns.

Under his leadership, UAMN's insect collection has grown from 1,000 to more than 425,000 records, representing over 2 million specimens. His team is using the collection to build a library of DNA barcodes — genetic material fragments unique to species — for AV����̳ insects.

Sikes has authored 93 peer-reviewed publications and secured more than $3.25 million in external research funding, including four National Science Foundation awards. He holds a doctorate in systematic entomology from the University of Connecticut.

Leslie Shallcross

A registered dietitian nutritionist, Shallcross joined UAF Cooperative Extension in 2006 and has expanded Extension's evidence-based community health programming in disease prevention and nutrition.

Shallcross built and led AV����̳'s self-management programs for chronic disease and diabetes  beginning in 2007, training master trainers and course leaders across the state. She introduced the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's diabetes prevention program to AV����̳ and led the Dining with Diabetes course. In 2008, she started offering StrongWomen/StrongPeople strength-training classes, and five of the original groups remain active.

She has trained volunteer leaders to deliver programming in Anchorage, Fairbanks, Juneau, Bethel, Dillingham, Homer and Cordova, and she has established partnerships with the AV����̳ Native Tribal Health Consortium, the Kenaitze Indian Tribe and the Southcentral Foundation.

Shallcross also teaches food safety and preservation classes and co-chairs the AgrAbility program for farmers with disabilities.

Shallcross holds a master's degree in human nutrition from Pennsylvania State University. She has secured more than $1.7 million in grant funding since 2018. She is an award-winning contributor to Senior Voice and writes regularly for the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner.

The Usibelli Awards are among the university’s most prestigious awards. They are funded annually from an endowment established by Usibelli Coal Mine in 1992. Each year, a committee that includes members from the UAF faculty, the student body and the UA Foundation board of directors evaluates the nominees. Each winner receives a $12,500 cash award.

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