Academic Staff Excellence Award Descriptions

The primary mission of UW-Madison, and one of its greatest strengths, is the instruction that it provides to students. Academic staff teach classes and support the instruction received by thousands of students each semester.

Those nominated for this award shall provide and support instruction.

Academic staff teach about one-third of course sections, supporting the instruction received by thousands of students each semester. This award recognizes the exemplary accomplishments of an instructional academic staff member.

Nominees should display an uncommon commitment to teaching (e.g., works to maintain a strong and current knowledge of the field; seeks out and develops innovative approaches to teaching; serves as a mentor or special advisor to students; and sponsors student-initiated projects), employ especially effective teaching strategies (e.g., communicates high expectations; establishes good intellectual rapport with students; engages students in and out of the classroom in an active examination of the topic; conveys excitement about the material; fosters conceptual and critical thinking; models and encourages an integrated view of knowledge; and respects and responds to the diversity among students), and have enabled particularly notable achievements by former students.

Those nominated for this award shall provide and support instruction.

Many academic staff consistently go beyond the responsibilities of their positions and demonstrate outstanding sustained service and dedication to the university as well as to their individual units. It is this type of dedication that has made UW-Madison a world-class public research university.

Those nominated for this award shall have demonstrated outstanding, long-term personal commitment to the greater university community.

UW-Madison is one of the nation’s largest public research universities. Academic staff serving as principal investigators or as project research personnel perform critical research functions and make possible the advancement of knowledge and the service to humankind that results. Candidates will be considered in different arenas as follows:

1. Individuals functioning as an independent investigator (one award)
2. Individuals providing critical research support (one award)

Those nominated for these awards shall conduct or support the university’s research mission.

Academic staff from many arenas of responsibility make it possible for the university to serve the more than 50,000 people who work and study on the UW-Madison campus. Academic staff may manage facilities, direct business services, or ensure the smooth functioning of classrooms, laboratories, libraries, and student service offices. The leadership awards will recognize nominees from different arenas of responsibility as follows:

• Academic staff who demonstrate leadership at the school, college, or the larger university level (one award)
• Academic staff who demonstrate leadership within an individual unit (one award)

Those nominated for these awards shall have demonstrated exceptional organizational leadership

The efforts and knowledge of a dedicated staff member at the university can make the difference between something functioning smoothly and efficiently and it working poorly or not at all. This award recognizes staff who perform their assigned jobs outstandingly and thereby make things work. They are typically not managers who supervise others; rather they are on the front lines of day-to-day work and lead from within the organization. Their dedication to the university and its mission are obvious. The term “unsung hero” is often applied to them.

Nominees’ specific contributions may range from overseeing a key process in an administrative office, to analyzing data so that it is meaningful to decision makers, to providing the “institutional memory” for an office. Their expertise comes from day-to-day attention to detail, and they take pride in using their in-depth knowledge to find constructive solutions to problems. This dedication may not receive wide recognition outside their own offices because their work is relatively specific to one area. However, people who do work with them or need to use their expertise quickly realize how essential they are and seek them out often. In addition, the impact of their work extends beyond their unit and clearly contributes to the

fulfillment of the university’s mission.

Additional description for the Martha Casey Award can be found here.

Those nominated for this award demonstrate consistent dedication to outstanding day-to-day job performance. Their work directly or indirectly affects the larger university’s mission and operation, and this impact should also be considered.

This award recognizes a retiring academic staff member who has provided leadership on behalf of academic staff across the campus and in addition has had a distinguished career. The individual need not have been actively involved in formal governance activities, but might have made other contributions that helped academic staff beyond the employing unit. In addition, nominees must have had a laudable career and must have demonstrated leadership and adherence to the highest level of professional standards in carrying out the duties of their positions.

Nominations must demonstrate (1) excellence in activities that help academic staff across the campus, such as service on governance committees or other leadership on issues of concern to academic staff and (2) excellence as an employee, such as service that is in all ways outstanding and is a model for faculty and staff on how to serve the institution. Nominees must have adhered to the highest level of professional standards.

Those nominated for this award shall be academic staff who have retired in the previous calendar year or are retiring in the academic year in which the award is given and who have been UW-Madison academic staff for at least 15 years.

Academic staff members play a key role in the state, national, and international public service mission of the university. Following the “Wisconsin Idea,” the UW-Madison enhances the economic vitality of the state, and the cultural and social life of residents by sharing knowledge, talents, and skills. Other academic staff members provide direct services to students or to the many people who use university facilities each year.

Those nominated for this award shall be involved in on- or off-campus outreach that reflects the public service mission of the university.