Kim Song (center), an associate professor of education, accepted the University of Missouri System President’s Award for Intercampus Collaboration from Chancellor Tom George (left) and Ann Taylor, Dean of the College of Education. Song and University of Missouri–Columbia Associate Professor Lisa Dorner both won the award in recognition of their partnership, which began in 2013. (Photo by August Jennewein)

Kim Song of the University of Missouri–St. Louis and Lisa Dorner of the University of Missouri–Columbia began a collaborative working relationship in 2013 that has yielded impressive cross-campus initiatives in the areas of teaching, research and outreach.

Their partnership has produced federal grants, teacher professional development programs, University of Missouri Online Course Sharing projects and the creation of the Missouri Dual Language Network, a network of more than 230 educators, parents and university professors that supports multilingual education.

Last week, the University of Missouri System awarded the two associate professors of education with President’s Awards for Intercampus Collaboration.

Chancellor Tom George and College of Education Dean Ann Taylor presented Song with the award on the UMSL campus. Dorner received the same award in a separate ceremony with UM System Chief Human Resources Officer Marsha Fischer and MU College of Education Dean Kathryn Chval and Vice Provost Jim Spain.

The award, which includes a $2,000 prize for each recipient, recognizes faculty who engage in activities that foster collaboration across two or more campuses of the UM System. Collaboration may be in the areas of teaching, scholarship, research, service, creativity, outreach or economic development.

“The work of Drs. Dorner and Song is critical and timely for the state of Missouri as the demographics continue to shift,” said Chval, who also serves as professor of mathematics education in the MU College of Education. “These demographic shifts require educators to learn new knowledge and competencies related to teaching children who speak more than one language. These efforts require strong cross-campus collaborations and leadership teams. Drs. Song and Dorner have answered that call.”

Prior to their collaboration, neither MU nor UMSL offered interdisciplinary courses on immigration, language and global education. Upon receiving a UM System course sharing grant, the team coordinated nine faculty from seven departments in the Colleges of Arts and Science and Education at MU, UMKC and UMSL. They have developed and offered four courses on “Language and Global Education” to more than 50 students.

Their collaborative intercampus approach exemplifies the criteria for the President’s Award for Intercampus Collaboration.

“They are leveraging talent and resources through designing projects to bring much needed language learning to multiple kinds of educators, demonstrating their creativity in program design and their deep commitment to outreach,” Taylor said. “The result is scholarship, teaching and service to communities within the state and beyond.”

The UM System President’s Awards are presented annually to faculty members across the system’s four campuses who have made exceptional contributions in advancing the mission of the university. Dorner and Song will be formally recognized by President Mun Choi during an awards celebration to be held in June.