Best university professor in the U.S. is from NJ, students say

Who's the best professor in New Jersey? And the country?

According to the latest annual list from RateMyProfessors.com, it's Timothy Purnell of the Health Science Department at Montclair University.

"AMAZING!!!! TAKE HIM," the most recent of 55 student ratings reads. "Class flies by with him. He is passionate and is a great teacher.

It's not the first major honor for Purnell, also the superintendent of Somerville Public Schools. The NJ Association of School Administrators named him one of three regional superintendents of the year for 2015.

Purnell is joined in the top 10 by Julie Mazur, also of Montclair, in the General Studies Department. "You will laugh, you will learn and you will have fun," one of ther students' rankings reads. Several warned, though — she takes attendance seriously and will fail you for two absences. 

Purnell earned an overall 5.0 ranking from the site — the highest it gives. He got 5s in "helpfulness" and "clarity" — though just a 3.7 in "easiness." The last mark doesn't count toward the overall ranking.

"He challenges you and makes you think about things," another student reviewer wrote. "Don't take him if you plan to sit back during class, he looks for class participation and involvement."

Every year, RateMyProfessors.com compiles lists on the highest-rated professors and top schools, as ranked by students. It's also got a yearly roundup of the hottest professors (that distinction went to Paul Evans of Brigham Young University; New Jersey didn't crack the top 10).

Purnell has been an adjunct at Montclair since 2002, according to his biography at Montclair.

Before Somerville, he was the superintendent in Harding Township for three years.

His research project "No Transient Child Left Behind," studied the link between student transience and standardized test scores on a global and local level.

In a Tweet Friday, Purnell said his "students deserve the credit as they make our class interesting, relevant, and engaging!"