The Distinguished Graduate Faculty Award is designed to recognize a faculty member who is engaged in the graduate education enterprise as an outstanding teacher, mentor, and scholar.
Deadlines
Nomination by Wednesday, January 15, 2025
Materials by Monday, February 17, 2025
Email Nominations to: Dr. Ross Gosky with SUBJECT LINE: Distinguished Graduate Faculty Award
Application Information
- The recipient will be selected in January and will be honored at the Graduate School awards reception in the Spring.
- The monetary award of $1500 (if sufficient funding is generated by the endowment) will be administered in the Graduate School as an expense account.
- The funding may be used for any non-salary expense related to performing the research or creative activities, including purchase of equipment and supplies, and travel for data collection or dissemination.
- The recipient must spend the funds by May 15 in the year awarded.
Eligibility
The award winner should be noteworthy, performing well above the general level of good graduate faculty performance.
Accomplishments should include:
- Graduate student mentoring in teaching, research / creative activities, and/or professional practice
- Sustained research or creative activities documenting currency in the discipline
- Service to the graduate endeavors on campus
Application Process
The application must have the support of the department chair and the nominator (or other senior faculty member in the nominator is the chair)
Selection Criteria
The award winner should be noteworthy, performing well above the general level of good graduate faculty performance.
Graduate Teaching - Outstanding teaching at the graduate level
- Teaching should go beyond classroom performance
- Thesis and/or dissertation supervision
- Internship or product of learning supervision
- Research mentoring
- Note especially whether the nominee has included graduate students in his or her research—whether graduate students have published with the nominee
- Have the nominee's graduate students participated in Research Day?
- Have the nominee's graduate students made significant presentations at national and international conferences and meetings?
- Teaching awards are somewhat helpful—but note that the UNC Board of Governors Award is specifically for teaching undergraduates, so that award should not carry much weight for this competition. Graduate mentoring awards more significant in this category.
Research
- Publications in peer-reviewed venues (pay attention to research productivity in the last two to five years, especially because this is an annual award)
- External funding (all other things being equal, this should tip the scale in a nominee's favor, especially if the grant includes support for graduate students)
- Patents, other intellectual property
- Inclusion of graduate students in research projects and as co-authors when appropriate
- Mentoring of graduate students for Research Day
Service to Graduate Education
- Should be specifically service to graduate education
- Significant weight should go toward the following
- University-level service
- Graduate program director, coordinator, or designated advisor
- Graduate AP&P
- University Research Council
- Graduate Education Task Force
- Graduate Committee, Strategic Planning Commission
- Graduate School Committees
- Participation in Graduate School events for students (orientations, workshops, etc)
- Service at the state, regional, national and international level in organizations and initiatives directly related to the nominee's graduate program
Nominee CVs will be reviewed carefully to determine the faculty member's contributions to graduate education. Rank and length of service at App State will be factored into the decision.
Sustained Research or Creative Production
- C.V. that documents a long-term research agenda and significant research or creative productivity
- Clear project description—either extending existing research or creative production or developing a new line of enquiry or creativity
- Potential contribution of proposed project to the discipline or to the public understanding of the discipline
- Clear plans for dissemination
All other things being equal, any of the following should be given extra weight in the following order:
- External funding
- Research fits into App State's targeted research/creative areas: environment and energy; health and human services; Blue Ridge Parkway/Appalachian region; artistic production and performance; viticulture and natural products
- Mentoring student research
Past Recipients
- 2022-2023: Dr. Maggie Sugg, Geography & Planning
- 2021-2022: Dr. Howard Neufeld, Biology
- 2020-2021: Dr. Shawn Bergman, Psychology
- 2019-2020: Dr. Jay Fenwick, Computer Science
- 2018-2019: Dr. Marie Hoepfl, Sustainable Technology and the Built Environment
- 2017-2018: Dr. Lisa Curtin, Psychology
- 2016-2017: Dr. Darrell Morris, Reading Education and Special Education
- 2015-2016: Dr. Karen Caldwell, Human Development & Pschological Counseling
- 2014-2015: Dr. Sid Clements, Physics and Astronomy
- 2013: Dr. Susan Staub, English
- 2012: Dr. Doris Bazzini, Psychology
- 2011: Dr. Rahman Tashakkori, Computer Science
- 2010: Dr. Jon Winek, Human Development & Psychological Counseling
- 2009: Dr. Gary Walker, Biology
- 2008: Dr. Betty Coffey, Management
- 2007: Dr. Denise Martz-Ludwig, Psychology
- 2006: Dr. Geri Miller, Human Development & Psychological Counseling
- 2005: Dr. Sally Atkins, Human Development & Psychological Counseling
- 2004: Dr. Tim Ludwig, Psychology
- 2003: Not given
- 2002: Dr. Douglas James, School of Music
- 2001: Dr. C. Kenneth McEwin, Curriculum & Instruction
- 2000: Dr. Hunter Boylan, National Center for Developmental Education
- 1999: Dr. Leroy G. Baruth, Human Development & Psychological Counseling
- 1998: Dr. Edward T. Turner, Health, Leisure & Exercise Science
- 1997: Dr. Thomas K. Keefe, History; Dr. David C. Neiman, Health, Leisure & Exercise Science
- 1996: Dr. Peter Petschauer, History; Dr. Edelma Huntley, English
- 1995: Dr. Dinesh S. Davé, Information Technology & Operations Management
- 1994: Dr. Harry M. Davis, Finance, Banking & Insurance
- 1993: Dr. Edwin T. Arnold, English
- 1992: Dr. A. Thompson, Political Science & Criminal Justice
- 1991: Dr. Jane Lieberman, Language, Reading & Exceptionalities