Two Indian-origin professors are among the four to have been named 2011 MacVicar Faculty Fellows for their outstanding undergraduate teaching, mentoring and educational innovation at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Bishwapriya (Bish) Sanyal of the Department of Urban Studies and Planning; and George Verghese of the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science were honored along with Christopher Schuh of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering; and Patrick Winston, of the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science.

Bishwapriya Sanyal, who received his PhD in urban and regional planning from the University of California at Los Angeles, joined the MIT as a faculty in 1984 and served as the head of the Department of Urban Studies and Planning from 1994 to 2002 and chaired the MIT faculty from 2007 to 2009. Sanyal, currently the Ford International Professor of Urban Development and Planning, also directs the SPURS/Hubert Humphrey program at MIT for mid-career professionals.

George Verghese is a professor of electrical engineering and has been part of the MIT faculty since 1979. He received his B Tech from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras in 1974; his MS from the State University of New York, Stony Brook in 1975; and his PhD from Stanford University in 1979, all in electrical engineering.

“It is certainly in the spirit of Margaret MacVicar's commitment to students that we award these prestigious fellowships and recognise the creative efforts of MIT's outstanding teachers. This year's fellows are deeply committed advisors and mentors, they have led important curriculum changes and made significant contributions to programs in student life,” MIT Provost L Rafael Reif said during a reception at Gray House.