President’s Award for Teaching Excellence
Founded in 2024, the President’s Award for Teaching Excellence is the highest honour for teaching at Yorkville University.
Recipients of the YU President’s Award for Teaching Excellence inspire and facilitate learning in ways that have a positive and sustained influence on our students. These faculty not only exemplify our core values but demonstrate exceptional abilities to encourage and motivate students, to create supportive and inclusive learning environments, to foster student success within and beyond the classroom, and to reflect upon and refine their teaching practice.
By recognizing the achievements of exceptional Yorkville University educators, we celebrate and enhance a culture of excellence in teaching and learning.
Elements of Teaching Excellence
The President’s Award for Teaching Excellence recognizes and celebrates faculty who:
- cultivate dynamic and interactive learning environments that motivate and challenge students to explore their curiosities, deepen their skills, and apply their learning in new and impactful ways;
- offer learners constructive, timely, and specific feedback that inspires them to reflect on their work, encouraging growth, resilience, and a commitment to continuous improvement;
- create inclusive learning environments that anticipate, celebrate, and respond to the diversity of learner needs and experiences; and who
- engage students in authentic learning opportunities that enable them to demonstrate our Signature Learning Outcomes, enhance their employability, expand their professional networks, and connect them to communities.
Award Details
What do I need to know?
Any YU faculty member who has taught at least one YU course in the past 12 months, and is not currently a Program Chair, Director, or serving in any decanal capacities is eligible for the award.
If you are unsure whether the excellent YU instructor you have in mind meets these criteria, please reach out to us at [email protected] and we can help!
Yes! Any member of the YU community, including students (and recent grads who have taken a YU course in the past 12 months) may submit a nomination for a YU faculty member.
Yes! As a faculty member, you may apply directly for the President’s Award for Teaching Excellence if you meet the eligibility criteria.
Yes! Any member of the YU community, including peers and colleagues of excellent YU faculty, may submit a nomination for the President’s Award for Teaching Excellence.
Each year, the adjudication committee will identify a final Shortlist from among whom four recipients of the President’s Award of Excellence will be selected (two from New Brunswick; one from Ontario; and one from British Columbia). The recipient and the Shortlist will be celebrated at YU convocations.
Recipients of the award receive: a citation of excellence; an award and citation presented at Convocation; up to 2-nights’ accommodation and meal expenses to attend Convocation as well as a celebratory brunch; and up to $3500 for registration, travel, and/or accommodation expenses for a conference or event that will meaningfully contribute to/enhance their teaching practice.
The Shortlist for the award receive: a citation of excellence; and an invitation to a celebratory award brunch.
Yes, recipients will be expected to: address graduating class(es) at an upcoming Convocation ceremony; deliver a presentation at a school-wide event, such as the annual teaching conference; as well as serve as a member of a future President’s Award for Teaching Excellence Adjudication Committee.
The Shortlist is not expected to do any of the above.
For nominations, there are two key components: 1. Your Statement of Support for the faculty member you are nominating; and 2. Your contact information.
For applications, there are three key components: 1. Your Personal Statement, 2. Your resume/CV, 3. Your contact information.
That’s it! See full details and link to the online nomination/application forms below – or click here to nominate or click here to apply!
This year’s deadline is Sunday, February 15th at midnight (local time).
Once the nominations/applications close, they will move into adjudication across February to April with the Recipient and Shortlist selected by early Summer. The Recipient and Shortlist will be announced in June and receive their citations at TFS Convocation later that year.
We imagine no more than 60 minutes/1 hour – of course, it could take a bit longer or a bit shorter depending on your style and approach with your Statement of Support/Personal Statement. The more specific details and examples you can give in your c. 700 words about your YU professor, the more powerful your nomination will be; likewise, for applications, the more specific details and examples you can give about yourself in your c. 700 words, the more powerful your application will be.
…and you do not have to write a polished, formal letter on fancy letterhead, no! Be you, be true, tell us quick and meaningful stories about them and their excellent teaching, and your voice will go far.
We invite Award applicants and nominators to book one-on-one meetings to individually chat about the award, reflect on your teaching, and ensure application/nomination packages are complete and ready for submission.
For nominations – Yes! You certainly can nominate more than one YU faculty member who is an excellent teacher. Be sure to submit these as separate nomination packages with individual Statements of Support and with individual nomination form completions.
For applications – As a YU faculty member, you can apply only once per year. Regardless of how many courses you teach and how many YU programs you teach in and are connected to, if you are eligible for the Award, one complete application per year will ensure you are considered each cycle. (Remember, if you have received the Award in the past five (5) years, you will unfortunately be ineligible until the end of that five-year period.)
The Award is adjudicated by a Committee of YU community representatives (students, faculty, and staff) who will review complete nomination and application packages initially selected by YU Vice Presidents, Academic and Principals (NB, ON, and BC). The committee will select a long-list of candidates to have a live interview conversation with (or recorded video) about their teaching. After these Candidate Interviews/videos, the Adjudication Committee will make recommendations to the President for the Recipients and a BC, NB, and ON Shortlist.
That’s it! Check out the full details and links below for wider information, and if you have any questions/concerns, please reach out to us at [email protected]
We can’t wait to read about and learn more intimately about all the excellent teaching happening at and across YU!