Ivana Milanovic Receives Roy E. Larsen Award for Excellence in Teaching
Ivana Milanovic, professor of mechanical engineering in the College of Engineering, Technology, and Architecture, is the 2022 recipient of the Roy E. Larsen Award for Excellence in Teaching. This honor is presented each year to one of the University’s most outstanding teachers who exhibits excellence in classroom teaching, takes an interest in—and makes an impact on—the academic success of students, and greatly contributes to University life.
For 30 years, Milanovic has demonstrated an allegiance to the study and practice both of exemplary teaching and effective learning. As a researcher, she has authored more than two dozen scholarly papers on the examination of the educational process; as an instructor, she has incorporated her insights to create consummate academic environments.
Milanovic, whose doctorate is from New York University’s Tandon School of Engineering, has taught or lectured at Tandon and at Columbia University, among others, and has called the University of Hartford her professional home for the last 21 years.
“Her commitment to professional development in teaching can clearly be seen thanks to her exceptional record of scholarly work, which has been both intense and sustained throughout the years,” says Hisham Alnajjar, dean of the College of Engineering, Technology, and Architecture (CETA), and professor of electrical and computer engineering.
Milanovic’s ongoing research concentrates on such complex and crucial topics as vortical flows, computational fluid dynamics, multiphysics modeling, and collaborative learning strategies.
She has many notable accomplishments beyond the classroom. Among other activities, Milanovic has sponsored undergraduate presentations at the Creativity and Research Colloquium, mentored young scholars in their pursuit of scholarships, and directed efforts to develop CETA’s turbomachinery laboratory, which required a voluminous amount of grant proposals and donation solicitations. She has also contributed to nearly 100 scientific journals, NASA reports, conference papers, and software releases.
Milanovic is also a member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the American Society of Engineering Education, and the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering.
“Dr. Milanovic is an exceptional example of a teacher-scholar with a deep dedication to students and high-quality teaching and learning,” Alnajjar adds.