Nate Bowling – University Excellence in Teaching Award 2025

Making Complex Chemistry Click - Professor Uses Feedback to Shape the Course Experience

Professor Nate Bowling is a big reason that so many students are drawn to upper-level Advanced Organic Chemistry classes. For junior Elijah Randazzo, Bowling's teaching is a major part of why he's engaged in research and interested in applying for an advanced chemistry degree in graduate school.

Randazzo is a first-generation college student. He graduated high school in Waupaca and initially enrolled in an engineering program at UW-Platteville. He changed his major after taking organic chemistry with Dr. Bowling.

Two years ago, Bowling was awarded the UWSP University Scholar Award for his active record of publishing. To date, he has 24 peer-reviewed articles in major chemistry journals. He has guided more than 90 undergraduate students like Randazzo immersed in research during the academic year and over the summer, when many of the student assistants can conduct full-time work in the lab designing experiments.

"Last July I had just made my own final compound and remember thinking, 'I'm the first person in the world who made this.' We are mostly responsible for how to get there and yet, he's there when we have a question," Randazzo said.

As a teacher, Randazzo said Bowling provides clear student expectations and ample practice problems and weekly quizzes. What stands out, he says, is how Bowling uses easily understood comparisons and applies the course content in ways that are digestible. Bowling's goal in lectures is to help students build on their own intuition for deeper learning. That student-centered approach earned Bowling a University Excellence in Teaching Awards for 2025.

"He has a way of breaking down concepts that makes a complex process make a lot more sense. It makes you want to keep learning. He really does go far above the normal," said Randazzo.

Bowling sees himself as a mentor who wants to both challenge and support his students. With a bit of dry humor mixed in his lectures, Bowling is compassionate and encouraging. His students know they can check in with questions and that their feedback on course evaluations is valued.

"He once asked what I thought about his in-class problem days during lecture. We ended up having a conversation about the pros and cons of them," said Mya Beyerl '25 chemistry graduate.

Student surveys that Bowling develops have shaped his approach to in-class activities, the frequency of quizzes, even the days of the week he gives them quizzes and exams. He consistently looks for ways to improve his course quality.

Dr. Bowling wants to not only convey the information but to ensure his students have a firm grasp of the concepts, to help them to excel in his classes.

"I feel the success I have had as a teacher comes down to seeing students as adult human beings. Like any adult, they want to feel that they are valued," said Bowling. "My students appreciate my intentional focus on building personal connection through learning their names in the first week of the semester and having an open-door policy for student questions."

In a matter of weeks, Bowling will again have 50-100 student names to commit to memory in the next session of CHEM 325- Organic Chemistry. At the advanced, senior level course, Bowling said he is drawing inspiration in chemistry Nobel Prizes of the past 25 years for topics he will cover in modern organic chemistry.

Writing in his award nomination letter, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry chair David Snyder commends Bowling for his willingness to reflect and keep innovating in his instructional skills. "He has had a transformational impact on the lives and careers of a generation of students at UWSP, and his teaching, scholarship, and mentorship are cornerstones of the chemistry and biochemistry curriculum," Snyder said.