Congratulations to Prof. Alex Burant for the CoS Galileo Circle Copernicus Award

Please join me in congratulating Prof. Alex Burant, who received the 2025 College of Science Galileo Circle Copernicus Award!  This award  recognize the contributions made by faculty whose extraordinary accomplishments are deserving of recognition and significantly advance the mission of mission of the department, the College of Science, and the University of Arizona.  Prof. Alex Burant’s exceptional dedication, innovative teaching methods, and the impact of his work in the field of physics education have made him an exemplary awardee for this prestigious award. 
 

Prof. Burant joined the department in 2018, a fresh Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina (UNC), and he has already transformed the way we teach and interact with students in lower-division classes.    Alex has been a contributing member of the Faculty Learning Community at the University since his first semester.  His teaching philosophy is marked by evidence-based education. In every lecture, he incorporates think-pair-share activities and implements group-based discussions. A hallmark of Alex's teaching methodology is his use of a flipped classroom model. Through video lectures, Alex allows students the flexibility to navigate the material at their own pace before in-person sessions. This approach has been met with high praise from students who consistently commend on the "freedom and flexibility" and its positive impact on their learning experience. This past year, he played a major role in designing PHYS 110, Introductory Physics in Studio Style.  

 

Alex's extraordinary dedication to physics education went beyond the country’s boundary. In the Spring of 2023, he volunteered to be the first faculty member from the physics department to teach at the Arizona College of Technology (ACT) at Hebei University of Technology in China. He quickly became the most popular instructor there among students, faculty, and staff. They are impressed by his enthusiasm, his dedication, his passion, and his skillful way of teaching.  It is not a surprise that he was the one that was chosen to be on the recruitment videos, public meetings with potential students and their parents.  He literally became the “spokesperson” for the applied physics program at ACT.  

 

Alex’s impact on physics education has not gone unnoticed within our university community. In 2022, he received the College of Science Distinguished Early-Career Teaching Award. In both 2022 and 2024, he won the Department of Physics Excellence in Undergraduate Physics Teaching Award.  He is transforming how we teach physics by showing us how joyous and natural active teaching can be.  

 

Congratulations to Alex for this very well deserved award!