L&S Academic Staff Teaching Excellence Awards
General Description
The College of Letters & Science honors outstanding instructional academic staff for their excellence in teaching and mentoring undergraduate students. To recognize these contributions, the College offers five L&S Academic Staff Teaching Excellence Awards($3,000) per year.
Award recipients will encompass the following characteristics:
- Advance the educational mission of Letters & Science through evidence-based and student-centered undergraduate teaching and student mentoring
- Contribute to an inclusive, fair, and equitable environment that fosters engagement and a sense of belonging for students and colleagues
- Contribute to one or more of the following areas:
- Pedagogical Creativity and Innovation
- Inclusive Excellence
- Promotion of the Liberal Arts
- Support of the Wisconsin Idea
Please use this form to submit nominations by February 3, 2026.
Questions regarding the awards: Cathy Yu at teach.learn@ls.wisc.edu.
Table of Contents:
Eligibility and Restrictions
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Non-tenure track instructors employed by an L&S department with at least a 50% appointment.
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An instructor of record for L&S courses at least 4 semesters (not including mentored research or independent study courses).
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Staff are eligible for the L&S Academic Staff Teaching Excellence Awards once every 4 years.
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Each department may only nominate one staff member per year
Nomination Instructions and Materials
Nominations are made by the department chair/director or their delegate on behalf of the department following departmental norms for award nominations.
Nomination material should be in a single PDF file, include bookmarks for each letter and section, and be submitted via the online Nomination Form.
Your PDF should include the following in the order they appear:
- An abbreviated (five pages maximum) curriculum vitae of the nominee. Limit the number of publications listed to twenty, including those related to teaching.
- Three letters of support (three pages maximum each)
- A nomination letter from the department chair or their delegate
- A supporting letter from present or past student(s)
- One supporting letter from a member of the university community
- A reflective statement by the nominee (two pages maximum)
- A teaching dossier with material and evidence that in a cohesive and comprehensive way supports the nomination (six pages maximum). This may include but is not limited to:
- A list of contributions and achievements
- Course material
Award Criteria
The nomination material should speak to the nominee's positive impact on
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undergraduate students with their excellence in teaching and mentoring practices.
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creating an inclusive, fair, and equitable environment that fosters engagement and a sense of belonging for students, and colleagues
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advancing the educational mission of the College of Letters & Science and should include reference to at least one of the following: pedagogical creativity and innovation, inclusive excellence, promotion of the Liberal Arts, and/or support of the Wisconsin Idea.
The reflective statement by the nominee should address their teaching and learning philosophy, practices, and objectives and how these have evolved over time.