Bei Yu
School of Information Studies Professor Bei Yu has been granted the Graduate Education Faculty Excellence award by Syracuse University, to “honor faculty members whose dedication to graduate students and commitment to excellence in graduate teaching and mentoring have made a significant contribution to graduate education at Syracuse University.”
In order to be eligible for this award – given to only one faculty member of each department per year – Yu showed an eagerness and aptitude for mentoring graduate students in their roles as scholars, teachers, and academic professionals. She also provided graduate students with special advising efforts and advocacy, all while delivering exceptional graduate-level instruction.
Yu is being recognized for her commitment to teaching as well as her contribution to her field. Most of her research focuses on improving information quality, organization, and access by using machine learning and natural language processing techniques. She is currently working on a project that focuses on computational modeling of misinformation in science news. Yu was nominated for this award by Yingya Li, an iSchool doctoral student, who herself was named as honorable mention for Graduate Dean’s Award for Excellence in Research and Creative Work.
The iSchool is extremely proud of Bei Yu receiving this award. She has demonstrated all of the greatest practices and principles of education that the School of Information Studies holds in high regard. The Dean of the iSchool, Raj Dewan says, “Professor Yu has provided excellent education, mentoring, and advisorship to many graduate students. She has been on the thesis committee for 17 students, and is currently serving as the director of the doctoral program at the iSchool.” He goes on to compliment her overwhelmingly positive reviews from students, and her ability to draw graduate students from all over campus to enroll in her classes.
Yu has stated that, “Since joining the iSchool, my main education activities have been focused on training the next generation of data science researchers and practitioners.” She explains how much she has grown as a teacher by listening to what her students need from her:
“Working with graduate students has always been a source of inspiration for me. I am honored to be a part of an important chapter in their life and career, and am inspired by their curiosity, creativity, and perseverance.” In turn, she has designed and maintained a curriculum that captures and informs them in ways that will well-prepare them for their next steps in life.
