Outstanding Teacher—Jennifer Lundmark

Jennifer Lundmark

Jennifer Lundmark puts heart and soul into her work. Not her heart, but a frog’s heart to be precise. The Sacramento State Biology professor regularly uses the amphibious creature’s organ to give students a first-hand look at the some of the complex, yet simple, foundations of life. Lundmark, the winner of this year’s Outstanding Teaching Award for the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, uses a variety of experiences for showing students the physiological and biological world in which we live.

“I keep trying to do things that give more access and hands-on experience to students,” she says. “I use active learning to help them understand rather than just remember. Role-playing, case studies and applied activities are all things that I use in the lab.”

However, Lundmark’s classes haven’t always been so involved. By her account she’s taught the same course 19 times over her nine years at Sacramento State, which has given her the opportunity to learn and develop more effective ways of increasing comprehension. She’s discovered that students can retain information easier when they can actually see and touch the things that they’re learning about and that real-time practice is what’s best for her students.

From dissecting frog hearts to implementing innovative and interactive computer programs, Lundmark’s distinguishing methods of instruction give her students the benefits of deeper understanding. It’s hard to argue with her straightforward philosophy and even harder to find a student of hers who would disagree.

Lundmark’s teaching career indirectly began at UC Davis, where she majored in biology. Surprisingly Lundmark wasn’t drawn to teaching until after she graduated. She recalled her experience as a teacher’s assistant in a human anatomy class, and that memory inspired her to return to graduate school and pursue physiology and a career in teaching.

“I had one of those epiphanies where I realized that what I was doing wasn’t changing the world for the better,” she recalls. “And I remember that the most exciting and interesting class was an anatomy class I had T.A.’d for, so I decided to go for it.”

And although she graduated from UC Davis, Lundmark is right at home here in the state’s capital.

“I just love Sacramento State. The students are so receptive and curious about what’s going on. And the interaction between students and teacher is great,” Lundmark says. Now in her ninth year of instruction, even she is amazed at how her teaching has evolved.

Aside from teaching at the college level, Lundmark is involved with the community as she and other members of the science faculty work with local elementary schools in the Sacramento area. Her expertise in science helps elementary school teachers in providing a context in which non-English speaking students improve their language.

She is also involved with the Fire Fighters Burn Institute for Children and volunteers as a lifeguard for the annual camp held in Tahoe. Along with local fire fighters, she helps children who have been severely burned enjoy a weeklong vacation in a safe and comforting environment.

And Lundmark is as active in the pool as she is watching over it. An avid swimmer, Lundmark is also a member of the Sacramento Masters Swim Team in Natomas, where she excels and occasionally competes in the 50-, 100-, and 200-yard breaststroke.

But aside from her impressive extracurricular involvement with the school and community, Lunmark says her true passion is teaching.

“I love my job and I love working here at Sacramento State. The faculty and students here never cease to amaze me,” she says.

— Josh Huggett