Teaching Excellence Awards

Eligibility Criteria and Requirements:

1. Must be a current graduate student.
2. Must have teaching experience for at least two semesters from Fall 2020 to Fall 2022.
3. At least one of those terms must be as instructor of record.
4. The second term could be instructor of record, non-instructor of record, or assistantship in a student learning support unit such as the writing center, gross motor lab, the digital scholarship lab, etc.

Evaluation Criteria:

1. Evidence of exemplary course design.
2. Evidence of excellent pedagogical approach(es) (e.g., instructional methods and techniques, assignment design, assessment of student learning, etc.).
3. Evidence of student engagement that goes beyond standard expectations.
4. Evidence of efforts to improve instruction and teaching effectiveness.

Application Requirements:

1. Current CV.
2. Teaching statement should explain how you implement your teaching philosophy and discuss successes and challenges in the classroom, as well as efforts to improve. You may include MOCES scores if relevant (maximum 2 pages, single spaced).
3. A supporting letter from one faculty member who has observed you teach as an instructor of record (maximum 2 pages, single-spaced). The letter should:
   • Situate teaching experience in light of department teaching opportunities and responsibilities.
   • Provide explicit evidence of how your teaching is meritorious beyond standard expectations in satisfying the evaluative criteria
4. (Optional): A second letter from a supervising faculty or administrator who is familiar with your assistantship work (maximum 1 page, single-spaced).
5. Supporting materials to include:
   • A syllabus from term served as instructor of record.
   • Two examples of course assignments you designed and used.
   • No more than 2 additional examples to demonstrate how your teaching goes beyond standard expectations (e.g., examples of feedback on student work, materials to improve engagement of diverse students across learning styles and identity backgrounds, etc.)

2 Awards Available

• One award for discussion-based TA
• One award for lab-based TA

Eligibility Criteria and Requirements:

1. Must be a current graduate student.
2. Must have served as a TA under a supervising faculty member or members for least two semesters from Fall 2020 through Fall 2022.
3. One term can be as assistant in a student learning support unit such as the writing center, gross motor lab, the digital scholarship lab, etc.

Evaluation Criteria:

1. Evidence of exemplary support of the supervising professor(s) and/or broader class that goes beyond standard expectations.
2. Evidence of excellent pedagogical approaches (e.g., in facilitating discussion or in preparing lab notes and facilitating lab instruction).
3. Evidence of student engagement that goes beyond standard expectations.
4. Evidence of efforts to improve teaching effectiveness.

Application Requirements:

1. Current CV.
2. Teaching statement should explain how you implement your teaching philosophy and discuss successes and challenges in the classroom, as well as efforts to improve (maximum 2 pages, single spaced).
3. One supporting letter from a faculty member who has observed your teaching (maximum 2 pages, single-spaced). The letter should:
   • Situate teaching experience in light of department teaching opportunities and responsibilities.
   • Provide explicit evidence of how your support of the supervising professor(s) and student learning is meritorious beyond standard expectations in satisfying the evaluative criteria.
4. Optional: A second letter from a supervising faculty or administrator who is familiar with your assistantship work (maximum 1 page, single-spaced).
5. Supporting materials to include:
   • Three (3) examples of materials that you designed as evidence of exceptional support of student learning (e.g., materials for facilitating discussion on difficult topics, lab notes you prepared that engage multiple learning styles, materials to improve engagement of students across diverse identity backgrounds). 

Application Deadline: 

February 3, 2023 by 11:59 p.m. (CST)

Application Submission: 

Submit application materials via email to the Director of Graduate Studies for your program.  The DGS will review and select the top nominee for each award category and forward to the Assistant Dean. Late submissions will not be accepted.  Please indicate for which award you wish to be considered.