Outstanding University Teacher Award Non-Tenure Track Faculty
(Revised June 2021)
Overview
This award is for non tenure-track faculty and staff whose teaching accomplishments are exceptionally significant and meritorious among their ISU colleagues. The award is designed to recognize persistent, focused, and purposeful dedication to striving for excellence over time. This includes: learning about and applying effective instructional practices across a wide range of teaching activities; evaluating the effectiveness of those practices; and reflecting on personal values and professional experiences to shape future teaching practices. This award is given to one recipient each year and includes a stipend.
Eligibility Criteria
To be eligible for a Non-Tenure Track Faculty Award nomination, an Illinois State University teacher must:
- Be a full- or part-time teacher with a non-tenure track appointment (i.e., not on a tenure track).
- Have completed at least four semesters of university credit-generating teaching responsibilities at Illinois State University under one of the eligible appointments above.
- Receive support for their candidacy from both department chair/school director and college dean. (Support from the chair/school director should include both a completed nomination form and a letter of support. Support from the dean should include only a signed nomination form.)
Note: Previous award recipients within the prior five years and current members of the University Teaching Council (UTC) are ineligible.
Nomination Procedures
- At the Department/School Level
- At the College Level
- University Teaching Council Process
Nominators
Any current or former ISU department chairperson, school director, division head, or dean; any current or former ISU full- or part-time faculty member; or any current or former full- or part-time ISU student may nominate someone meeting the eligibility requirements for this award. Nomination letters or emails should be sent directly to the candidate’s department chair/school director. Nomination letters/emails should:
- Provide the nominee’s name and academic department/school
- Explain the nominator’s basis of knowledge of nominee’s teaching
- Explain why the nominee should be considered for this award
Selection
The chair/director should use a selection process developed and implemented in consultation with the DFSC/SFSC to identify no more than two nominees each year and forward those names to the Chair, University Teaching Council, via email no later than 4:30 p.m. on the last Tuesday of April. Nominees should then prepare their teaching portfolios and submit them to their chairs by the first Tuesday of September (or a date arranged with the chair/director). Chairs/directors then forward completed portfolios to their college dean’s office no later than the third Tuesday of September.
Each dean, dean’s appointee, and/or selection committee, in conjunction with the College Council, shall do the following:
- Each college may nominate up to three candidates for each award category. (An exception is the College of Arts and Sciences, which may forward up to three in each category for each division: social sciences, sciences, humanities.)
- Each nomination should include the candidate’s application materials, including the nomination form signed by the candidate’s chair/director and dean.
- Nominations should be sent to the special email address included in the letter sent to deans from the chair of the University Teaching Council. If you need assistance, please contact Outstanding@ilstu.edu.
- All materials must be received electronically no later than 4:30 p.m. on the third Tuesday of October. No late nominations or materials will be accepted.
- The college should notify each nominee’s department chair/school director of the college-level outcome.
- Chairs/School directors should notify their department’s nominees of college outcomes.
The UTC shall evaluate nominees’ materials to select recipients and notify each finalist of the outcome. In the case of portfolios of equal merit, preference shall go to those who have not previously won the award.
Teaching Portfolio Contents
See Portfolio Preparation Guidelines for general tips and step-by-step instructions on creating a compelling teaching portfolio.