First Monday - February 6, 2006

In this issue:

• Excellence in Teaching Celebrated Through Boyd Fellowship
• New Faculty Will Bring Expertise in Commercial Law and Litigation

Excellence in Teaching Celebrated through Boyd Fellowship

In order to recognize and to reward faculty who demonstrate exceptional teaching effectiveness, William F. and Joan L. Boyd have established a Teaching Excellence Fellowship at the College of Law. The inaugural recipient of this new faculty fellowship award is Professor Mark Anderson, who for more than two decades has been a master teacher deeply committed to his students’ learning and professional growth. Whether teaching Business Associations in a classroom of 100 students or Unfair Competition in a small, interactive seminar, or engaging in one-on-one conferences at his office (where the door, famously, is almost always open), Professor Anderson has shown that he cares about students and their futures. He has received previous recognition as a nine-time winner or co-winner of the student-bestowed Peter E. Heiser Award for outstanding dedication to students at the College of Law, and he is a seven-time winner of the UI Alumni Award for Faculty Excellence.

William F. Boyd (UI Law '65), practices in Coeur d'Alene. His spouse, Joan L. Boyd, also a University of Idaho graduate, taught English for 25 years in the Silver Valley before retiring. She continues to supervise student teachers in the Coeur d'Alene area for the University. Bill and Joan created the Boyd Teaching Excellence Fellowship as an expression of their appreciation for faculty who dedicate themselves to the professional challenge of superior teaching.

New Faculty Will Bring Expertise in Commercial Law and Litigation

Two new appointments, effective in 2006-07 upon approval of the Board of Regents, will enhance the academic excellence and real-world experience of the University of Idaho law faculty.

Michael A. Satz will teach commercial law subjects, including contracts and creditors’ rights. He will step into the faculty position vacated by the retirement of Professor Joann Henderson. Satz received his J.D. degree with honors from the University of Michigan Law School, where he was executive editor of the Law Review. He received his baccalaureate education at Southern Methodist University, where he earned dual degrees with honors in political science and history. He is presently working as corporate counsel to Nissan North American, Inc., focusing on automobile industry-related finance issues. He formerly worked as an associate with the law firm of Carrington, Coleman, Sloman & Blumenthal in Houston. Prior to law school, he served as a surface warfare officer in the U.S. Navy, where he also was assigned equal opportunity and legal investigations duties.

Alan F. Williams will teach litigation subjects, including civil procedure, criminal law, practice court and, eventually, evidence. He will overlap in a transitional year with Professor Craig Lewis, who is now on a half-time, phased retirement schedule and will conclude his faculty service in 2007. Williams received his J.D. degree with honors from the Georgetown University Law Center, where he was elected the second-year student class president and selected for the Journal of Law and Policy in International Business. He received his baccalaureate degree from the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech). His legal career has been in the U.S. Marine Corps, where he has served as a chief prosecutor (and special assistant U.S. Attorney), as defense counsel, and as a felony and misdemeanor trial judge. He has litigated more than 500 cases and has presided over more than 160 trials.

Further information about the Boyd Teaching Excellence Fellowship and about the new law faculty appointments can be obtained from Dean Burnett (dburnett@uidaho.edu).