Jason Merret recognized for student-focused leadership on both sides of the desk

When students come in for help with an assignment during Jason Merret’s office hours, they get the technical help they need. They also get an unusually high level of understanding and empathy that can only come from someone who  sat in their place. Merret earned his B.S. in aeronautical and astronautical engineering from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 1999, stayed for his master’s and doctorate, worked in industry for many years, then came back to join the faculty in 2018.

For his empathetic leadership, Merret is being honored with the 2023 Stanley H. Pierce Faculty award.

Apparently, empathy has been something Merret has excelled at for a long time. When he was a senior at UIUC, he received the Stanley H. Pierce Student version of the award.

One of Merret’s forrmer students, Jorge Aranda, who earned his B.S. in ’19, spoke about the relationship built with Merret with Aranda when he was a senior and president of Design Build Fly.

“DBF is an engineering student organization focused on designing, manufacturing, and testing an unmanned aerial vehicle for collegiate competition,” Aranda said. “I noted Professor Merret’s willingness to devote time for any student who needs his help, his ability to walk anyone through a complex concept, and his attention to detail and nuance.

“As a senior engineering student in charge of leading a major design project while tackling an equally challenging academic term, I genuinely felt that he made my personal struggles and feelings his own—often staying after hours with me when I needed it and never compromising my education,” Aranda said. “His advice to me as a first-time leader was always truthful, and his guidance to me as a student was always clear. It was obvious that he expended a great deal of effort in helping me make DBF as successful as it was that year, placing UIUC in the highest overall score in 12 years.”

Neha Bagde, B.S. ’22, said one Merret’s strongest qualities is his transparency regarding the expectations he has for his students.

“He holds all of his students to a high standard, and this is reflected in the way Prof. Merret structures his classes,” Bagde said. “He knows his teaching style and homework assignments are challenging, but never do we feel thrown off the deep end. He genuinely cares for his students.”

Bagde described one memorable example that occurred during her junior year.

“I asked Prof. Merret for a one-day extension on a Design Build Fly homework assignment but instead, he gave me a three-day homework extension,” she said. “After asking him why he gave me two extra days, Prof. Merret said he understands how difficult junior-level technical classes are. He knows how long those other homework assignments take and didn’t want me to stress about his class. As a student, who at the time was struggling with a harder course load and learning through a virtual setting, that meant a lot to me.”

Another example of Merret’s investment in his students is a special gift he had custom made for graduates of his Aircraft Senior Design Sequence course. It is a pin shaped like wings with the Block I in the center. In their final class, Merret tells his students the meaning behind each of the six feathers that make up the pin: Strive to be right, Listen, Care, Be wise/be respectful, Family, and Home. One colleague said, “Jason’s goal as an instructor goes much deeper than how to design an aircraft. He strives to also instill mature character traits.”

This award was established in 1969 in honor of Stanley H. Pierce, who served as an associate dean in the College of Engineering and who was an inspiring leader in the constant endeavor for better relations between faculty and students. These awards are given to both an outstanding student and an outstanding faculty member in recognition of their efforts to develop empathetic student-faculty cooperation.