CALL FOR NOMINATIONS FOR INDIVIDUAL FACULTY AND STAFF

On behalf of the Board of Regents, the USG Office of Academic Affairs is pleased to announce and invite nominations for the Regents’ Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SOTL) Awards. The Board of Regents acknowledges the value of scholarship of teaching and learning articulated by Boyer’s Scholarship Reconsidered (1990) and exemplified by the Carnegie Academy for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning. This award is intended to encourage and support the work of faculty members whose scholarship focuses on the instructional mission of the institution. Two faculty/staff awards may be given; sector will not be a consideration for these awards.

Criteria

The award committee will look for persuasive evidence that nominees have:

• Engaged in the systematic examination of issues about student learning and instructional conditions which promote the learning, building on previous scholarship.
• Demonstrated how research findings have impacted their teaching practice.
• Engaged in scholarship that is public, peer reviewed and critiqued. Journals and conferences should be recognized and respected within discipline and/or SoTL.
• Produced scholarly work which contributes new questions and knowledge about teaching and learning.
• Developed a well-articulated teaching philosophy that drives research questions.
• Documented the dissemination of their scholarship through an annotated bibliography which summarizes problem or question, methodology, and results.
• Served in a formal or informal leadership role—which can include mentoring others, leading workshops or learning communities, advancing SoTL through journal or conference service—to promote and support SoTL on their campus or beyond.

Eligibility and Nomination Procedures

Current full-time members of the teaching faculty and teaching academic staff at USG institutions are eligible for individual awards. Each institution is invited to submit one nomination for an individual award. The nomination process should be coordinated by each institution’s academic leadership, and each submission must be endorsed by the institution’s chief academic officer.

Required Documentation

Nomination portfolios should not exceed 15 pages, including any supporting materials (1” margins, minimum 12-point font for each section below). To ensure a focused presentation, nominees should select the most compelling and relevant evidence. Each portfolio submission must include the following components:

• A Table of Contents for the portfolio. (Note: The TOC does not count toward the 15-page limit.)
• A nomination letter from the institution’s chief academic officer. (Note: The nomination letter does not count toward the 15-page limit.)
• A teaching philosophy narrative that outlines how their research questions and the related goals, theories, and methods of their scholarship activities support their teaching philosophy. (1-2 pages).
• Data/evidence of the impact of their teaching techniques/pedagogies on student learning and its potential impact on teaching and learning in the discipline. This should include an annotated bibliography which summarizes, for each study, the problem or question under investigation, methodology, and results. (3+ pages – this section should be the bulk of the portfolio).
• Overview of how they have supported or promoted SoTL beyond their own individual research. This could be locally or more broadly, and can include formal and informal activities such as mentoring, workshops, or learning communities.
• A condensed curriculum vitae that includes relevant SOTL presentations, articles and/or publications. (2-3 pages).
• Optional: One additional letter of support from a colleague qualified to comment on the value and quality of the nominee’s scholarship of teaching and learning activities, and its impact in improving undergraduate/graduate education. This letter should describe how the nominee’s activities have contributed knowledge in the field and how it has enhanced the learning of students. (1-2 pages).

Note: All documents must be combined into a SINGLE pdf file and uploaded through the Regents Portfolio Submission System. Portfolios that exceed 15 pages or do not meet formatting requirements will not be accepted. Portfolios will be reviewed and assessed by the contents of the portfolio. Links to additional materials will not be reviewed.

Award Committee

A special committee composed of faculty and administrators from across the USG who are experienced in teaching and learning practices will review the nomination portfolios and recommend finalists for each award.