Congratulations to HAS University Distinguished Professor Ty Ferré, Recipient of the 2026 Blitzer Award for Excellence in Teaching

UPDATED 6 Feb 2026 with details about date, time, and location.

The Professor Leon and Pauline Blitzer Award for Excellence in the Teaching of Physics and Related Sciences recognizes outstanding dedication to teaching across the U of A departments of Astronomy, Hydrology and Atmospheric Sciences, Physics, and Planetary Sciences. 

Established by the Blitzer family, the award honors the legacy of Professor Leon Blitzer, a pioneering scholar, gifted educator, and tireless mentor and his wife, Pauline Blitzer, whose lifelong commitment to education, community service, and civic engagement left a lasting impact on the university and beyond. 

This year’s recipient, Ty Ferré, PhD, is recognized for his exceptional contributions to teaching and mentorship. 

His commitment to student learning, academic excellence, and service reflects the values embodied by Leon and Pauline Blitzer and the spirit of this distinguished award. 

Dr. Ferré will be presented with the Blitzer Award on at 4:00 pm on Friday, April 24, 2026, and will deliver a lecture titled “Hydrogeology: The Art of Saying as Much as You Can with the Little Data that You Can Afford.” The award presentation and talk will take place in the Kuiper Building, Room 308 and the Atrium, on campus at 4:00 pm. [https://lpl.arizona.edu/about/contact/kuiper].

"As hydrogeologists, we tell ourselves, every year, that next year people will begin to understand the value of water. Water is life. Water flows through everything that people do and it sustains the natural world. And yet, we are still faced with having to provide answers to complex questions with very limited monitoring budgets. Until that day that water is highly valued, we have to make do with what we have. Fortunately, we are up to the task. Throughout my career, I have focused on two aspects of this challenge. How can we get more useful information from high-tech geophysical methods? How can we do a better job of deciding which data to collect to guide water-resources decision making?"

Congratulations, Ty! We look forward to hearing your talk in April!