Edgar J. Rojas-Muñoz Honored With Montague-CTE Scholars Award For Development Of Teaching Excellence

Edgar J. Rojas-Muñoz, Ph.D., assistant professor in Visualization, was recently awarded the Montague-CTE Scholars Award for development of teaching excellence.

The award, now in its 36th year, is given by the Center for Teaching Excellence to tenure-track assistant professors based on their early success and passion for teaching undergraduate students. Nine faculty members around the university earned the honor, which comes with a $6,500 grant to further develop their teaching excellence.

Rojas-Muñoz teaches in the Visual Computing and Computational Media section in the Visualization program. His research focuses on how mixed reality technologies can assist people in their day-to-day lives. He received a degree in computer engineering from the Costa Rica Institute of Technology in 2016, and a Ph.D. in industrial engineering from Purdue University in 2020.

“I am deeply honored to have been selected for this award,” Rojas-Muñoz said. “This recognition motivates me to keep my teaching at the forefront of what I value, and will allow me to interact closely with other instructors who also understand that impactful teaching can truly make a difference in the lives of our students.”

With the grant, Rojas-Muñoz plans to further the development of a self-sustaining virtual reality education framework for high schools. The program places high school students in developer and leadership roles — with guidance from Rojas-Muñoz and graduate students — to create VR projects that assist classroom needs.

The funds will be used to incorporate undergraduate students to help facilitate the program across multiple school districts. The undergraduates will also assist the high school students in learning code and implementing their projects.

“We don’t have an undergraduate student as that middle point between the high school and graduate students who are working on the project,” he said. “So we want to involve undergraduate students to help bridge that gap. And hopefully in doing that, the high school students will be drawn to study at Texas A&M and pursue STEAM- or STEM-focused careers.”

Rojas‑Muñoz said his passion for teaching began with his own student experience, and how his studies could affect the world around him.

“Teaching is probably one of the most important things that you can do with your life,” he said. “It provides you with the opportunity to get content across as effectively as you can, and I want to help students see their potential while they are still in school.”

At the start of each semester, Rojas-Muñoz asks his students to respond to three questions: Who are you? Why are you at Texas A&M and in this major? What do you want to get out of this class?

Students record their answers on video, then revisit them in the final class of the semester to reflect on how their thoughts changed or stayed the same. At the start, Rojas-Muñoz said about 70 percent say they are interested in learning about the topic, getting their degree and a high-paying job.

“I remind them they only get so many years of college, and there are a lot of people who just go to get the grades and be done,” he said. “But they still don’t know who they are or what they want to do with their life. I always like to take those opportunities to try and resonate with them a little bit, and help them think about why they are really here and form that connection with them.”

Rojas‑Muñoz encouraged faculty to use the university’s resources, including the Center for Teaching Excellence, to strengthen students’ learning experiences.

“There are only positive things to get out of being a good teacher — it’s a noble call,” he said. “As faculty, we need to take advantage of our resources and focus more on shaping the minds of the people that are going through our classrooms in the best possible way.”