2019 Distinguished Faculty Service Award

Congratulations to Our 2019 Recipient

Excerpts and Highlights From Nominations

On Teaching

“Jesper does it all. He’s an exceptional teacher who volunteers to host a weekly course, every quarter, that allows students to meet and develop their research ideas. It’s open to students of all disciplines (although most frequented by OB and MSE students), and is affectionately referred to as “Jes-Lab”. In it we use each other as sounding boards, but the primary value comes from the insights and guidance that Jesper provides. Literally teaching everything from research design, to presentation techniques, and everything in between. It has been an invaluable part of almost every OB student’s tenure here at the GSB.”

On Advising and Research

“Regardless of whether or not you are officially his advisee, he is always there to meet one-on-one and provide guidance on how to navigate grad-school, the discipline, academia in general, or life in general.”

“The PhD is full of uncertainty and can be scary, but I feel like in Jesper I have an ally to help me overcome the obstacles that come on an academic journey. I feel truly supported by his advice and mentorship. He cares so much and is very generous in terms of time and advice. As busy as he is, he always finds the time to provide me with constructive feedback on my papers. He often gives me hints at what other people might criticize my papers for, so I have time to think in anticipation of these criticisms. He finds the right balance by giving me enough freedom so I can make my own mistakes, while providing enough guidance that I can learn from them.”

“I can always count on him to give me his honest opinion and to guide me in the right direction. One time he typed out a full page of response late at night after I asked him a quick question. I was really touched by how invested he was in my development, as well as that of other students, regardless of their field.”

Exemplar

“One of the informal nickname of this session (i.e. weekly student seminar) used to be the “Jesper lovers” lab, just to emphasize how much love there is for Jesper among the students!”

“Thank you Jesper. Your teaching and mentorship have made a big difference in my time here.”

“Always with good humor and cheer, without compromising his standards of what it means to be an excellent researcher.”