Top of the class

For a man who only graduated eight years ago, Mark Russell is making his mark in the academic world. As principal lecturer at the University of Hertfordshire, Russell has won a national award for his innovative approach to teaching. It's the first time the Times Higher Education Supplement award has gone to an engineering lecturer and MCIBSE.

But Russell is keen to point out that, at heart, he's a typical building services engineer: "My university education came late in life. I'm one of those building services people that go to industry first, become switched on by the subject and want to formalise their qualifications while they're working." He began with a mechanical engineering apprenticeship and went on to take ONC and HNC. Russell worked in a range of mechanical engineering roles, then 'fell' into building services.

"Nobody at the time seemed to make a strategic career decision to move into building services. It was a branch of engineering that I wasn't really aware of. When I went for a job interview with the Metropolitan Police, the interviewer held up a thermostat and said 'do you know what this is?'. I just thought, 'why on earth is he showing me a thermostat?'!"

So Russell started in the drawing office and learned from the ground up. He then moved to Islington Local Authority, where his passion for aspects of building services was ignited: "I was at Islington for four years and worked on a variety of projects such as converting disused garage spaces into workshops for the community. I also worked on some low energy projects which is what really switched me on to simulation, low energy buildings and understanding building performance."

After Islington, Russell returned to the Metropolitan Police in a more senior role. Projects included Streatham and Colindale police stations. "They were very major and complex buildings. We had to consider everything from cells to a range of different office requirements, some of them nine to five, others for 24-7 operation. You had to think about services, and there were some real challenges."

It was at this point that Russell started his degree at Hertfordshire, studying part time while still working. "I was exposed in the classroom to some key thinkers, and came across tools such as BREEAM." After completing his degree four years later, Russell was offered the opportunity to stay on at Hertfordshire University to study for his PhD in computational fluid dynamics, and to teach.

This wasn't an easy choice: "I liked the idea of studying the subject more, but the idea of teaching; standing up in a classroom frightened the living daylights out of me!" Fortunately, Russell quickly overcame these initial concerns: "Now I love it. Getting in front of a class is something I look forward to. You have to hold the students' attention – educate and entertain. I take the lead from inspirational people who have been my teachers."

Russell won his award, backed by the government's Learning and Teaching Support Network, for 'e-tutoring'. He designed software for use on the University's intranet (or managed learning environment). With this, Russell can assess 150 students each week with unique questions, and give each one automated yet personalised feedback – with major positive effects on examination performance.

Russell regrets that his University no longer runs its building services engineering degree. He thinks that the drop off of services students in general is down to the image of the subject: "It is unfortunate that engineering is too often seen as a dull discipline. This is particularly true of building services engineering where the design, creativity and analyses lead to end products which are tucked away behind ceilings and walls."

But Russell is hopeful that his enthusiasm for engineering, and the recent award will help to change this image. He is particularly encouraged by the fact that many topics he began studying over a decade ago are now considered 'hot': "Sustainability, simulation and modelling, making sustainability work. They are still big issues and legislation is now in place to support them."

Like most engineers, Russell is very practical and likes to see ideas that work in real-life. "I enjoy working in the academic environment, with people who are as passionate about engineering and education as I am. But it has taken me away from the coal face. I would like to apply my knowledge to real world buildings. I have had job offers, but frankly I love it here too much! This allows me to have a range of experiences I am not sure I would get elsewhere. I can explore what interests me, and that is freeing and fulfilling."