Call for Nominations – International Educator of the Year Awards 2020

Leonardo A. Villalón, Dean, UF International Center

At no time in recent memory has international education been more important, nor have the challenges to it seemed as daunting.  As the current global pandemic underscores the crucial value of international collaboration and exchange among universities, the UF International Center is pleased to again invite nominations for the 2020 International Educator of the Year awards.

These awards are made annually in recognition of the outstanding contributions of faculty and staff to international education at the University of Florida. As in years past, three awards will be made:

• Senior Faculty International Educator of the Year
• Junior Faculty International Educator of the Year
• Staff International Educator of the Year

Colleges are invited to submit nominations for each of these awards.

The UFIC International Educator awards are meant to recognize extraordinary contributions by UF faculty and staff in the area of international education. While we deeply value international research and other activities, the International Educator of the Year awards are intended primarily to recognize those whose efforts have furthered the educational mission of the university and made a difference in the lives of students—undergraduate or graduate; domestic or international – as teachers, trainers and mentors.

Nomination Process:

Senior and Junior Faculty nominations:  All UF colleges are eligible to nominate one faculty member for each award category; CALS, CLAS and the College of Medicine may nominate up to two faculty members for each award. Each college is free to develop its own internal review process for selecting nominees.

For the purposes of this award, junior faculty nominees should be no more than five years post-tenure or no more than ten years into their academic career (for non-tenure track faculty). Senior faculty nominees should be individuals who have held tenure for more than five years or who have been in their academic career for more than ten years (for non-tenure track faculty).

Staff nominations:
All UF colleges as well as other relevant units (libraries, museums, centers) may make nominations for the staff award.  Staff nominations must include an endorsement by the nominee’s supervisor and department chair, director, or dean.

Colleges or other units may re-nominate previous nominees who were not selected for the campus-wide award.

A complete nomination package should include the following (please do not include additional materials):

• Cover page with the full name, title, position, and college/unit of the nominee
• A personal statement by the nominee of no more than two pages describing his or her contributions to international education at UF.
• A current CV or resume (preferably no more than 10 pp). 
• A letter of nomination from the nominee’s chair, director or unit supervisor, and endorsed by the college dean.  
• No more than two letters of support from supervisors, colleagues, and/or students.
• Please also include one high resolution photo of the nominee, preferably one that represents the nominee’s work as an international educator (e.g. in the classroom or the field).

Full nomination packages should be sent via email by the appropriate college or unit administrator to the UFIC Office for Global Research Engagement at OGRE@ufic.ufl.edu.  All nominations must be received by Friday, October 2^nd at 4PM.

Criteria and Selection of Winners: 

A university-wide committee appointed by the Dean of the UF International Center will select the winners for each of the awards. The award committee will consider nominations in light of the international educational contributions of the faculty or staff member and the impact of those contributions on students, as well as on international partners and the university community more broadly. We are particularly interested in accomplishments within the past five years which demonstrate a strong commitment to advancing international education at UF.

The awards committee will look for excellence in keeping with the nominee’s position and duties. This might include: the extent to which the nominee’s teaching has significantly contributed to student learning and engagement with international issues; the extent to which the nominee’s teaching has made a significant and recognized contribution to international education issues or has been carried out in collaboration with international partners; or the extent to which the nominee’s efforts have contributed substantially in support of UF’s global engagement.

Presentation of Awards:

The awards will be presented virtually via Zoom (or similar) on the afternoon/evening of Monday, November 16, 2020 during International Education Week. All nominees will be recognized, and the campus winner in each category will receive a plaque and a $1,000 award. 

For more information, contact Julie Fesenmaier at JulieFes@ufic.ufl.edu More information about the awards, as well as profiles of previous winners, are available at https://internationalcenter.ufl.edu/home/opportunities-scholarships/international-educator-awards