On December 8 2004, Federal Minister for Education Brendan Nelson (left) presented Professor Joe Wolfe with the Australian University Teaching Committee’s Award for Physical Sciences and Related Studies.

Professor Joe Wolfe was awarded the 2004 Australian University Teaching Committee’s Award for Physical Sciences and Related Studies. He was one of six academics from universities around Australia honoured with an individual teaching award. The Australian Awards for University Teaching, now in their eighth year, are focused on raising the status of university teaching. Joe’s award nomination cites a ‘highly motivational teacher with tremendous commitment and outstanding talent who is extremely responsive to students’ needs’. Especially noted was a new course, Physics Thinking, developed by Joe for advanced science students.

In December 2004, Joe was also awarded the French Acoustical Society’s International Medal (la Médaille Étrangère) for his outstanding results in the area of music acoustics.

Joe has achieved the rare accomplishment of wining accolades in teaching and research at the same time.