Co-sponsored by the Graduate College

Overview

A well-crafted nomination for this award would clearly address sustained excellence and innovation in graduate student mentoring. Faculty members from academic units with graduate or professional instructional programs are eligible for the Campus Award for Excellence in Graduate Student Mentoring. Up to two recipients will be selected to receive this award, tenure-system and specialized faculty are eligible. The award consists of an honorarium and a personalized commemorative plaque.

Eligibility

Tenure-system or specialized faculty who have taught on the Urbana-Champaign campus for at least 5 years as of the first day of the current academic year.
Has not won this award in the previous 10 years
Department Chairs and Heads are eligible

Evaluation Criteria

Sustained excellence in graduate student mentoring;
Innovative approaches to graduate advising;
Demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion;
Positive impact on graduate student scholarship and professional development; and,
Other contributions to improve graduate mentorship (e.g., developing courses and curricula; mentoring professional development; leading workshops on mentoring; advancing the scholarship of teaching and learning; or making other multidimensional contributions to graduate student mentoring beyond the classroom, laboratory, or studio; etc.)

Nominations

A nomination may be submitted by students, faculty members, administrators, or alumni, and should be submitted to a departmental selection committee.

The departmental selection committee should include at least one graduate student member. Individuals who have been nominated during a particular year should not serve on the departmental selection committee during that same year.

Nomination packets must include all materials described below. Please follow this outline when submitting a nomination:

The standard cover page (Attachment A) with the appropriate signatures.
A nomination letter addressing each of the Evaluation Criteria described above. The nomination letter should indicate why the nominee is exceptional as an excellent mentor of graduate students. (Not to exceed 3 pages.)
A mentoring philosophy statement provided by the nominee. This statement should include a discussion of the challenges, methods, and goals of quality graduate student mentoring including a well-articulated commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion through their mentoring. (Not to exceed 2 pages.)
Two letters of support* from students, preferably one from a graduate student currently enrolled at Illinois and one from an alumnus. (See Attachment C for a sample solicitation letter.) (Not to exceed 2 pages each.)

*Letters from students should be solicited by the departmental selection committee, not the nominee. The nominee may be asked to suggest names.

Attachments

Attachment A: Nomination Cover Sheet (you must download the form from Box to complete it)
Attachment C: Sample Letter Request from Former Student

Assistance

For more information about Campus Awards for Excellence in Instruction, contact the Office of the Provost at tab-awards@illinois.edu or 217-333-6677.