MUNCIE, Ind. -- Biology Professor Jon R. Hendrix has been named the 1997 Indiana Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education.

He is the first Ball State faculty member to receive the prestigious award and was selected from among nominees from 10 Indiana colleges and universities.

"It is a high honor and richly deserved," said President John E. Worthen. "Jon Hendrix represents all that is exceptional about our teaching faculty. His talent, dedication and commitment to students make him a worthy recipient."

The award is presented for "extraordinary dedication to undergraduate teaching" demonstrated by impact and involvement with undergraduate students; scholarly approach to teaching; service to undergraduate students, institution, community and profession; and support from colleagues and former students. The Chrysler Corporation sponsors the state award and a $1,000 cash prize to the winner.

"This is another great honor for one of our finest teacher/scholars," said Provost Warren Vander Hill.

The Indiana Professor of the Year is the second major award Hendrix has received this year. In April he was recognized as the best teacher of science in the country when he was presented the Society of College Science Teaching Outstanding Undergraduate Science Teaching Award.

"I am honored and humbled to receive the 1997 Indiana Professor of the Year award," said Hendrix. "For 37 years, I have attempted to instill a love for learning in my students, especially learning in the biological sciences, by asking myself each day, Why did I teach what I taught today?' And if I could answer the first question, How could I have taught it better?' To me there are three big E's in teaching: Empathy, Enthusiasm, and Excellence. I strive for, but do not always attain, each E."

Hendrix joined the biology department in 1973 after earning bachelor's and master's degrees from Indiana State University and an educational doctorate from Ball State. He is an authority on the teaching of ethics in human genetics and has conducted workshops for thousands of public school science teachers.

The Carnegie Foundation is a policy center devoted to strengthening the nation's schools and colleges. The Council for Advancement and Support of Education is an international association of colleges, universities and independent schools representing institutions in the fields of alumni relations, communications and fund raising.