Purpose of the Award
This excellence award serves the following major purposes:
1. To highlight the University’s commitment to engaged scholarship in teaching, engaged research/creative activities, and engaged service
2. To reward Graduate Student excellence in mutually beneficial, scholarly engaged teaching, research/creative activities and service
3. To thereby promote excellence in community engagement among other Graduate Students.
Nature and Number of Awards
One award will be bestowed in each year for excellence in engaged research/creativities by Graduate Students. The committee generally will not designate awards unless there are enough truly excellent candidates to justify such action that year.
The award recipient receives $1,000 and their community partner will receive a contribution to their organization. Funds for the awards are provided by the Community Engagement Initiative and the Graduate College.
Criteria of Excellence
Nominees who demonstrate the following qualities as documented in their nomination materials will be considered:
1. Exemplify excellence in engaged research/creative activities, work performed while a graduate student at the University of Delaware.
2. Clearly recognized externally as an engaged scholar as evidenced by letters of reference
Rules of Eligibility for the Award
1. Nominees must be full-time Graduate Students
2. Only work performed while a student at the University of Delaware will be considered.
3. Self-nominations are not allowed.
4. Nominations are retained for two years and can be updated yearly with additional evidentiary materials.
Nomination Materials
A typical nomination package will consist of the following elements:
1. The candidate’s curriculum vitae.
2. A nominating letter of no more than 2 pages in length.
3. Exemplars of the candidate’s work
4. Up to three additional letters of support, which clearly indicate the impact of the candidate’s scholarly contributions to the discipline and to the community. At least two of these letters should come from community partners outside of the University of Delaware.
Selection Procedures
Awardees are selected by the Faculty Senate’s Committee on Student and Faculty Honors. The Committee compares the evidence provided in the nominations against pre-established criteria for excellence in engaged teaching, engaged research/creative activities and/or engaged service. The Director of the Community Engagement Initiative, or their designee, will serve as an ex-officio member of the selection committee.
Every effort will be made to ensure a diverse membership, including reflecting the broad range of community engagement that exists at the University.
The Committee compares the evidence provided in the nominations against pre-established criteria for excellence in engaged research/creative activities /or engaged service.
Deadline for Submissions: September 30.
Please email the submission packet to Sarah Trembanis at sltrem@udel.edu . Please title the email “Graduate Student Excellence in Scholarly Community Engagement Award Submission.”