Dr. Len Lecci, a professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of North Carolina Wilmington and a researcher in the area of factors that influence decision making in health and legal settings, has been selected as a 2009 Excellence in Teaching Award recipient by the Board of Governors of the 17-campus UNC system.

The award, which includes a commemorative bronze medallion and a $7,500 cash prize, will be presented to Lecci at the UNC Wilmington spring Commencement exercises for the College of Arts and Sciences Saturday, May 9.

A faculty member at UNCW since 1996, Lecci's primary interests are in clinical and personality psychology. He teaches courses at all levels and is equally successful engaging students in a classroom setting as well as one-on-one in the laboratory. He regularly teaches three to four courses a semester, and both students and faculty colleagues consistently and enthusiastically praise his teaching, mentoring and involvement of students in research experiences.

"Our department is very proud of its tradition of engaging our students in applied learning experiences in the laboratory and clinic, and Dr. Lecci is one of our leaders in both venues," said psychology department chair Mark Galizio. "He involves his students with his research program as junior colleagues and their professional development as a result is apparent." Galizio noted that many students have co-authored papers and presentations with Lecci, which has helped them to move on to high profile doctoral programs across the country.

Lecci said the his goals as a teacher, aside from imparting course content to his students, center around helping students connect with the material, with him as a faculty member and with their peers in the learning community.

"Numerous studies have shown that post secondary education retention rates are highest when students report "feeling connected" to their institutional community, and I believe that this is critical to learning," he explained. "Professors can help students connect by showing them that we care about their education, their career path and their lives.

"It is also important that they feel connected to what they are studying. I challenge my students to fall in love… and to have the object of their affection be a vocation, a career or a topic. I also challenge them in class with the same intellectual questions that keep me interested in the field of psychology on a daily basis. We practice critical thinking skills and focus on topics that have not yet been resolved in the literature, which keeps students connected on an intellectual level."

In addition to teaching, Lecci served as the adviser for the psychology honorary society, Psi Chi, for 6 years, and is engaged in extensive outreach to the community. As director of clinical services for Memory Assessment and Research Services (MARS), he has trained graduate and post-doctoral students in the assessment of memory functioning, with an emphasis on the early detection of memory problems. He makes significant contributions to the university's commitment to community and regional service through numerous community presentations and offering continuing education to the professional community. A colleague notes that his presentations to the Eastern NC Alzheimer's Association caregiver conferences "have made a tremendous difference for Alzheimer's patients and their caregivers."

Past awards Lecci has received at UNCW include the Chancellor's Teaching Excellence Award, a Distinguished Teaching Professorship Award and the Board of Trustees Teaching Excellence Award. He received his bachelor's and master's degrees in psychology from Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, and his doctorate in clinical psychology from Arizona State University.