Student Testimonials
What do students think of Dr. Berry’s teaching approach? Find out here.
Student Self-Assessments
At the end of each semester, Dr. Berry asks his students to self-assess their learning experience. He asks the students to evaluate whether the course has enhanced their engineering skills and technical communications. He also asks the students to provide words of advice to future students who may take the course.
Below is a listing of student self-assessments, from various terms during Dr. Berry’s tenure as a professor.
Mech-322: Fluid Mechanics
“Fluid Mechanics has helped me build a stronger problem-solving skill by helping me not focus on the problem itself, but on the path that must be followed.”
Former student, Winter 2022
Mech-420: Heat Transfer
“MECH-420 with Dr. Berry has pushed me to limits I did not know I had. But I can say with 100% certainty I am a better student and will be a better engineer as a direct result of it. Taking this course with Dr. Berry was a blessing. You will work hard in this course, but you will MASTER the concept as they apply to the real world.”
—Former Student, Winter 2021
Letters From Former Students
Professor Berry,
I just wanted to thank you. All term you preached the importance of practice and the execution of each topic. I struggled at first but as the term went on your messages resonated with me.
For the first time in my academic career, a professor compared lessons from sports to academics. I was a three-sport varsity athlete in basketball, football, and baseball. Something I dedicated the majority of my childhood doing. I tied the lessons I learned from sports into everyday life but never seemed to do that with school.
You helped me connect those two parts of my life together. I worked out every single assigned homework problem for the first time in my academic career. Not once but multiple times. I spent countless hours working on each topic. I wasn't perfect but I can walk away from this class knowing I gave it everything I had, the same way I felt when I played sports.
Most kids try to avoid taking classes with you and complain about how hard you are but they don't see that you truly strive to make us the absolute best we can be. This is why for the first time I'm not worried about the grade I'm walking away with because I've gained something far more valuable.
The most important thing of all is that you're not afraid to integrate our creator into academics. I again want to thank you for not only the knowledge you taught me in the classroom but outside of it as well.
—Antonio St. John
Winter 2020
Good afternoon Dr. Berry,
I am sending this email to give you more insight into my thoughts about the class as I was beginning to run out of space on the survey you gave to us today. First of all, I wanted to thank you for the opportunity to take a difficult course and be pushed to become a better student. Through my previous KU courses, I have been able to skate by without fully understanding some of the course material, simply because I could understand it "good enough" to get an A. Through your heat transfer course, I was truthfully challenged to critically think about the lecture material, which resulted in me reviewing the homework in greater detail than I have for any class I have taken thus far. Through this experience, I began to understand the fundamental concepts of the course, thanks to your focus upon the units of each problem. It sounds like a little thing, but is one that is a very important detail to double check the math through each problem. At times I was frustrated and felt as though I could not understand the material, but with persistence and trying to understand the big picture, I began to make much progress. I will remember this class for how it showed me I can learn a great deal in a short amount of time. I appreciate you providing the external pressure to unlock the better engineer in all of us students. I know this course will serve me well in my career, thank you again for the opportunity to learn and push myself to grow.
—Cory Mazure
Spring 2022