Congratulations to Rausser College of Natural Resources professor Ignacio Chapela and executive assistant dean Lee Borrowman on being named winners of the 2023 Excellence in Advising and Student Services Awards. They are recognized by UC Berkeley’s Council on Advising and Student Services for their outstanding contributions to student learning, engagement, and belonging across the University.
A professor in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, Chapela was recognized with the Outstanding Faculty Advisor award for his longstanding support of the Conservation and Resource Studies major. He serves on the CRS governing committee and teaches its core courses, in which he is known for his thought-provoking discussions and compassionate voice in decision-making.
Chapela actively supports the student-led Alternative Graduation and he played a key role in the program's 50th anniversary celebration. The letter nominating Chapela noted, “During that day it became very clear how much students cared about him, and how his generous guidance over the years had positively impacted their careers.”
Borrowman was recognized with the Advising Champion award for her positive impact on student services and advising for undergraduate and graduate students, and for her financial support of new programming and initiatives to foster community and belonging.
As Executive Associate Dean, she has supported actions that reorganized, reclassified, and granted equity increases to staff in the Office of Instruction and Student Affairs, the College’s undergraduate advising unit. She has also collaborated with and advocated for Graduate Student Affairs Officers as they navigate recent adjustments to graduate student contracts.
Borrowman, Chapela, and other campus recipients will be recognized at a ceremony on Tuesday, November 28.
Learn more about all the awardees at the 2023 Excellence in Advising and Student Services Awards website. Past Rausser College winners include David Ackerly, Dante Gonzales, and Carmen Karahalios in 2019; Joshua Dullaghan, Lynn Huntsinger, Aileen Lavelle, Sarah Rhoades, and Lyn Rivera in 2020 and 2021; and Temple Byars and Varsha Mahdapoosi in 2022.