University of Arizona Foundation Leicester and Kathryn Sherrill Creative Teaching Award

SPONSOR

University of Arizona Foundation

PURPOSE

This award recognizes excellence in the art of teaching at all levels, but the Foundation places particular emphasis on teaching at the undergraduate level.

AWARD

One $2,500 award and the placement of a plaque in the Donna Swaim Honors Lounge in the Student Union Memorial Center.

CRITERIA

Unusually outstanding teaching methodologies; a demonstrated effort to ensure the quality of students' learning experiences; and consistently high scholarly standard in both rigor and currency of course content.

Eligible candidates are tenured, tenure-eligible, and multi-year career-track faculty who have a long-standing association (five years) with the University.

Candidates may be nominated by students, parents, faculty, department heads or deans.

NOMINATION PROCESS

Nomination packages must include:

  • A letter of nomination containing the names(s) of the nominator(s)
  • Nominee's current curriculum vitae
  • Statement of teaching philosophy (2-4 pages)
  • Teaching documentation including descriptions of teaching methods and techniques (2-4 pages)
  • Evaluation summaries from students across courses for the past three years. This may include both TCEs and SCSs. We acknowledge that SCSs were not collected in Spring 2020 due to the COVID-19 global pandemic, and were offered as an opt-in for Fall 2020. Thus, student evaluations from Spring and Fall 2020 will not be required. 
  • Letters of recommendation from students (maximum of 6)
  • Letters of recommendations from peers and relevant administrators (maximum of 3)

The nomination letter and letters of recommendation should highlight the nominee's creative and innovative contributions to teaching.

Inclusive excellence is the engine that drives the value and practice of diversity and inclusiveness at the University of Arizona. At the center of Inclusive Excellence is the recognition and acceptance of the talents, worldviews, perceptions, cultures and skills that faculty communities bring to the educational enterprise. The University of Arizona recognizes the power of a diverse community and strongly encourages nominations of individuals with varied experiences, perspectives, and backgrounds. As a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI), the University of Arizona also recognized the importance of contributions of the nominee to the HSI mission.

SUBMISSION OF MATERIALS

Materials must be submitted online through Arizona Cultivate.

Review the nomination packet carefully before submitting to make sure that all of the required material is accurate and included. Packets that are incomplete may be delayed.

SELECTION PROCESS

The nomination packet should be sent to the college deans. The dean will submit ranked nominations from their college before the nomination is submitted to Arizona Cultivate for review by a university-wide committee. The committee will not see the dean's ranking until members convene to review the nominations.

Notification of the award winners will be sent to the individual, the dean of the college and the nomination contact person in early March. Notification of nominations that were not selected will be sent to the dean of the college and the contact person or an appropriate senior member of the nominating team.

RECOGNITION

This award will be recognized at the annual Awards of Distinction Luncheon and Ceremony held in Spring at the Student Union Memorial Center to honor the recipients of the University of Arizona highest faculty teaching honors.

DUE DATE

Monday, December 4, 2023 at 5 p.m.

Awardees will be announced by April of 2024.

For More Information

Please contact: Dr. Adrián Arroyo, +1 (520) 621-2121 or email arroyopa@arizona.edu.