University-Wide Teaching Awards (General Information)

The Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost administers the selection for ten university-wide teaching awards. There are deadlines for nominations in both fall and spring semesters with faculty selection committees appointed by Vice Provost Gretchen Ritter who as chair of each committee serves as ex-officio member. The University-wide Teaching Award deadlines are as follows:

Fall 2009 deadlines: October 7th
Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation Teaching Award
President’s Associates Teaching Award (no nominations until 2010)
Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award

Spring 2010 deadlines: February 19th
William David Blunk Memorial Professorship
Chancellor’s Council Outstanding Teaching Awards
Jean Holloway Award for Excellence in Teaching
Dads' Association Centennial Teaching Fellowships
Joe and Bettie Branson Ward Excellence Award
Academy of Distinguished Teachers

Nomination & deadline to be determined
Friar Centennial Teaching Fellowship

IMPORTANT: Incomplete, late, or incorrectly formatted nominations will not be considered.

Requirements for University-Wide Teaching Awards
(Note: Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award has different requirements)

Eligibility
A faculty member must have a continuing appointment at the University of Texas, Austin in the year subsequent to their selection.

1. Dean’s Cover Letter

A cover letter from the dean nominating the faculty member, describing the selection process, and explaining the nominees’ rank (if relevant).

2. Department Chair’s Letter

A one- or two-page letter from the nominee’s chair summarizing the nominee’s sustained and significant contributions to education, particularly at the undergraduate level.

3. Summary Assessment of Teaching Effectiveness

Include the context of instruction (required vs. optional, difficulty, lower vs. upper-division, large vs. small courses, etc.), grade inflation indices, and other information to assist the award committee. The summary assessment may be contained within the Department Chair’s letter or may be a separate document prepared by the relevant unit teaching award committee.

4. Curriculum vitae

Include a current curriculum vitae.

5. Teaching Philosophy of the nominee
Include a one to two page statement regarding the nominee’s teaching values, objectives, and methods as well as their reflections on the challenges and rewards of teaching university classes.

6. Teaching Evaluations

A list of all organized courses taught by the nominated faculty for the past five years and Course Instructor Survey Summary Sheets for the past five years. Also, a complete set of course-instructor teaching evaluations [sharp copies only, no originals] from all courses taught over the previous three years. All evaluation forms, regardless of whether they contain student comments, must be included. Student hand-written comments should be included in the hard copy binder.

7. Reference Letters

No more than five letters of support from current or former students and/or faculty colleagues. Peer observations are especially valuable.

8. Syllabus
Include a syllabus from a recent favorite course.

9. Other supporting documentation as may be deemed appropriate. For the Piper nominations, PART B of the Nomination form found on-line is to be completed by the nominee (http://www.window.state.tx.us/scholars/programs/ppnominationform.html).

10. Submission of nomination materials
All required materials must be received by the deadline nomination date or the file will not be considered. 1) a binder containing the materials for the 10 areas described above and separated with a divider tab for each area. The front and spine of the binder must display the nominee’s name, department, and college. 2) a disk or USB drive containing .PDF files of each of the required 10 areas of materials must accompany the nomination at the time of submissions. There should be 10 files that correspond to the 10 required areas of materials.

(Note: amounts of honorariums vary depending on the endowment income.)

Submit nominations to Michael Acuña, Flawn Academic Center, Room 15. Also, feel free to contact Michael at 232-7841 (or at macuna@mail.utexas.edu) if you have any questions or need any clarifications.