Payne has received numerous awards in recent years. Her honors from Purdue University include two Society for Environmental and Ecological Engineers (SEEE) Instructional Excellence Awards (2022, 2019), Teaching Academy Fellow (2021), Exceptional Teaching and Instructional Support during the COVID-19 Pandemic (2020), University Residences Most Outstanding Faculty Award, (2017), and the Community Spirit Award (2016).

In October 2022, Payne was one of just two educators to receive the first-ever Purdue Teaching Catalyst Award at the annual Celebration of Teaching Excellence. This special recognition from the Office of the Provost recognizes extraordinary and prolonged efforts to improve education at Purdue. 

Lindsey Payne (left) and Kim Illingworth (right) receive the Teaching Catalyst Award from Jay Akridge (middle), provost and executive vice president for academic affairs and diversity 

We recently sat down with Dr. Payne to discuss her unique role at Purdue and accomplishments in service learning and EEE.

Can you describe your responsibilities and goals as director of service learning?
My goal is to direct, nurture, and sustain academic service-learning initiatives at Purdue among faculty, instructional staff, students, and community partners from the West Lafayette campus, serving as the focal point for Purdue’s system-wide efforts. I am actively involved in campus initiatives focused on the enhancement of teaching and learning, and support instructors to improve and deepen their efforts in teaching and engagement. I also teach a service-learning course and support faculty in developing and implementing their own engagement activities.

Why did you choose to pursue service learning?
As an instructor, I am constantly drawn toward getting my students to be more active in building sustainable communities in the most holistic sense—not just applying technical expertise, but activating their sense of civic agency as well. This meant moving out of traditional classroom settings to engage in the messy, "people" spaces. I've always been deeply engaged in the local community and consider myself a connector and boundary spanner, well suited for this pedagogical approach. This also means I am more of a practitioner scholar rather than a more traditional scholar. The engagement and service-learning field is rich with people like myself who live for this type of work.

Can you describe your interests as a “practitioner scholar” in more detail?
I sit at the intersection of sustainability, teaching and learning, and engagement focusing on transdisciplinary decision-making in community-engaged design. I currently teach EEE 472 (Community-Engaged Engineering & Design), in which students collaborate with local partners to install rain gardens, native plantings, and bioswales in the community. I am also involved in a variety of local sustainability initiatives, including water-quality programs, climate-action planning committees, and environmental policy boards. I teach, I apply my knowledge and skills in the community, and I assess my efforts in a scholarly way. 

What are your proudest teaching accomplishments at Purdue thus far?
EEE 472 holds my proudest moments as an educator. I'm not only proud of the curriculum and community-engaged experience I created for my students, but the growth I get to see in them. This is often their first opportunity to "own" a real-world engineering problem and thoughtfully collaborate with communities to address it. I have worked hard to learn from my failures in this course, which led me to create a more reciprocal and equitable experience for our community partners. 

I'm also very proud of the curriculum realignment we have completed in EEE. I was actively involved in the curriculum committee, which has been nimble and creative in responding to not only grand but localized challenges. It was great to be a part of that process. 

You have received numerous awards from Purdue in recent years. How does it feel to be consistently recognized for your efforts?
It’s humbling. I’m particularly honored by receiving the Instructional Excellence Award twice from SEEE. As teachers, there are no accolades greater than ones that coming from students. I feel incredibly fortunate to teach, inspire, and collaborate with our talented EEE students every day.

What led you to a career at Purdue?
I spent a lot of time reflecting on my career path, and I often share what that journey taught me with my students. There is no one way to undertake a career path; however, intentionality is key. I've been a high school teacher, a non-profit worker, and even a kayak tour guide. Each step along the way helped me to identify what I wanted to do with my life. Surrounding yourself with mentors and champions is crucial. I'm here at Purdue because I was allowed to create a role that reflects my interests and I am surrounded by amazing mentors that help me grow into my best self.

Lindsey Payne received her M.S. (2010) and Ph.D. (2015) in Ecological Sciences and Engineering at Purdue University. She currently volunteers for the Greater Lafayette Climate Action Plan Joint Leadership Team, GrowLocal Lafayette Urban Gardens Network, West Lafayette Go Greener Board of Commissioners, and Wabash River Enhancement Corporation Education Committee.