Empowering future engineers: Chwatko celebrated as 2025 ‘Great Teacher’

This March, the University of Kentucky Alumni Association honored six recipients of this year’s Great Teacher Awards.

Launched in 1961, they are the longest-running UK award recognizing accomplished and passionate educators.

In order to receive the honor, teachers must first be nominated by a student. The UK Alumni Association Great Teacher Award Committee, in cooperation with the student organization Omicron Delta Kappa, then makes the final selection. Recipients receive a commemorative award and stipend.

Malgorzata “Gosia” Chwatko, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering in the Stanley and Karen Pigman College of Engineering, is one of the distinguished Great Teacher Award recipients who strives to help her students discover their passions.

“They’re more than just a student in your class that is one out of ‘x’ many,” Chwatko  said. “They all need something different from you and they all offer something different to you — that’s what makes the job fun.”

“Professor Chwatko is not only an amazing educator inside the classroom, but also a mentor who genuinely cares about every student she meets,” Anastasia Shaverina, an engineering student, added. “Whether it’s helping to design experiments, analyze data or navigate important career decisions, no matter how busy she is, she will always make time for anyone who reaches out to her.”

Chwatko received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Connecticut and her master’s degree and Ph.D. from the University of Texas, Austin. Before coming to the University of Kentucky in 2021, she was a post-doctoral fellow in the Biomedical Engineering Department at the University of Texas, Austin. 

Chwatko’s research lab focuses on understanding and developing sustainable separation processes and polymeric materials considering cradle-to-grave design.

In 2024, she was named Research Faculty Mentor of the Month (June) for mentoring three undergraduate students, five graduate students and a high school student. Chwatko is also involved with the Materials and Chemical Engineering Students Association.

“As a graduate student, I nominated Professor Chwatko because she constantly encourages us to explore different ways of learning — whether it’s in the lab, at conferences or through mentoring and teaching others,” Emily Ingram, an engineering graduate student, said. “She’s always pushed me to step outside my comfort zone. No matter what path we choose, she’s been incredibly supportive of our career goals.”

Chwatko serves on the departmental Graduate Studies Committee and safety committees. She has served as a science coach for the American Chemical Society at schools in Kentucky and Ohio.  

In addition to conducting research and teaching, Chwatko also feels she’s been called to be a mentor — to guide students as they discover their place and purpose. 

“It’s a unique relationship — working with someone who’s still shaping their career and figuring out their path,” she said. “Being part of that journey and helping them discover their place and passions, both in and out of the classroom, is such an important role.”

To learn more about what makes Chwatko a “Great Teacher,” check out the video and “Behind the Blue” podcast episode above. 

In the coming months, UKNow will continue to share stories featuring this year’s Great Teacher Award winners.

About “Behind the Blue”

“Behind the Blue” is available via a variety of podcast providers, including iTunes and Spotify. Become a subscriber to receive new episodes of “Behind the Blue” each week. UK’s latest medical breakthroughs, research, artists and writers will be featured, along with the most important news impacting the university.

“Behind the Blue” is a joint production of the University of Kentucky and UK HealthCare. Transcripts for this or other episodes of “Behind the Blue” can be downloaded from the show’s blog page.