Computer Science Professor Receives Regents’ Recognition for Outstanding Teaching

Etienne Vouga, an associate professor in the Department of Computer Science at The University of Texas at Austin, has received a 2024 Regents' Outstanding Teaching Award for demonstrating extraordinary classroom performance and innovative teaching. Vouga is one of 12 recipients this year from across the University of Texas System.

"Professor Vouga's extraordinary dedication to his students and their academic success is inspirational," said Rachel Mersey, interim executive vice president and provost. "There is no bigger or better commitment that our faculty members can have than to their students. This award exemplifies the University's commitment to teaching excellence and innovation, and I'm so pleased that professor Vouga has been recognized for his efforts."

Vouga continuously seeks to understand the learning experience from his students' perspectives. He is devoted to furthering education, welcoming everyone into his courses and setting high expectations but also teaching students the related and intangible skills needed for class and career success. For example, he encourages his undergraduate students to relearn how to look for resources and truly understand and implement work, themselves.

Given since 2008, the Regents' Outstanding Teaching Award mars the highest honor for teaching from the UT System. It is presented annually to faculty members at each of the system's academic and health institutions. Each recipient receives a certificate, a medallion and $25,000 in appreciation of their positive impact on students and their institutions.

"Exceptional teaching is at the heart of our mission, and these award winners represent the highest ideals of education," said UT System Board of Regents Chairman Kevin P. Eltife. "By honoring these 12 educators, we're not only celebrating their achievements but also reinforcing the UT System's role in preparing students to excel in and out of the classroom."

Vouga joined UT Austin's College of Natural Sciences in 2014, after earning his Ph.D. from Columbia University and completing his postdoctoral fellowship at Harvard University.

His research focuses on the simulation of geometry and physics of thin, elastic materials - such as cloth, hair and paper - as they wrinkle, fold or get wrung out. Combining his expertise in computer science, applied physics, geometry and numerical methods, Vouga develops more accurate, practical algorithms for simulating materials and interactively designing objects constructed from them. Special effects studios, such as Disney and Weta Digital, have used his work to create realistic motion and simulations in movies like "Tangled" and "The Hobbit."

Vouga engages students in the classroom through energy and interactivity. His classes are well-known for being places where students can ask questions and he invites them to do so. This impassioned dedication to the success of his students in the classroom often leads undergraduate and graduate students to join Vouga in his research pursuits. As a mentor, Vouga encourages intellectual curiosity and academic growth - guiding students on how to approach and overcome problems and reassuring them when the research is difficult. He hosts scholarly reading groups within the department, provides graduate program advice and promotes research opportunities on campus.

In addition to teaching each semester, he is the head coach of UT Austin's chapter of the International Collegiate Programming Contest (ICPC) - a student organization that competes in teams of three against other universities to solve real-world problems using algorithmic programming.

"Professor Vouga has earned a reputation for inspiring students to continually go deeper in their learning, while engaging meaningfully and exploring how best to take what they learn out into the world," said David Vanden Bout, dean of the College of Natural Sciences. "His respectful approach to students both challenges them to stretch and delve into computer graphics, while offering support along the way. I'm thrilled to see this well-deserved recognition of his outstanding work in the classroom."