Faculty Awards

2025-2026 Faculty & Staff Awards Call for Nominations

Ruffin Cup

• What: Recognizes a career of top-level dedication to the spirit and progress of the liberal arts and humanities at Georgia Southern University. This is CAH’s top award.
• Who: All CAH tenure-track, non-tenure track, lecturers at all ranks, and tenured faculty at all ranks who have completed at least 10 years of full-time teaching at Georgia Southern.
• When: The committee will assess your entire career of achievements at Georgia Southern in all areas of the profession: teaching, scholarship and creativity, student success, professional development, and service.

Faculty Award for Excellence in the First 10 Years

• What: Recognizes CAH faculty who have demonstrated sustained achievement in teaching, scholarship and creativity, student success, professional development, and service during the first decade of their career at Georgia Southern.
• Who: CAH faculty who are within their first 10 years at Georgia Southern. The CAH Awards Committee chooses not to set a strict timeline, but past
• winners have tended to be in somewhere between their seventh and 10th year of employment at Georgia Southern. The committee will accept nominations for tenure track and non-tenure track faculty.
• When: The committee will assess achievements that have occurred within the first 10 years of employment at Georgia Southern in all areas of the profession: teaching, scholarship and creativity, student success, professional development, and service.

Faculty Award for Excellence in Engagement & Belonging

• What: Recognizes a sustained commitment to building, maintaining, and supporting a professional learning environment where everyone feels empowered, safe, and heard. The Engagement and Belonging can be directed toward students, faculty, staff, the local community, or all of the above.
• Who: The committee will accept nominations for CAH faculty who have made a significant impact toward an inclusive college experience for students, faculty, staff, local community, and supported a working environment of empowerment. The committee will accept nominations for tenure track and non-tenure track faculty.
• When: The committee will assess achievements that aided engagement and belonging at Georgia Southern and/or the local community. Emphasis will be on achievements within the last five years.

Faculty Award of Distinction in Scholarship & Creativity

• What: Recognizes a significant accomplishment in any and all areas that might count as scholarship or creative works while at Georgia Southern University. CAH is a big tent, so the committee recognizes that scholarship and creative works might take the shape of articles in peer-reviewed journals, an exhibit in a gallery, a published book, a film screened at a competition, etc.
• Who: The committee will accept nominations for individual tenure track and non-tenure track faculty.
• When: The committee will only assess achievements in scholarship and creative works while the nominee is employed at Georgia Southern. Emphasis will be on achievements within the last 3 years.

Faculty Award of Distinction in Teaching

• What: Recognizes a significant accomplishment(s) in the field of pedagogy while at Georgia Southern University. Teaching success can take many forms, including mentorship programs, making important curricular and/or pedagogical advances through innovative methods, approaches, or technology uses in the classroom, participating in teaching panels at regional or national conferences, etc.
• Who: The committee will accept nominations for individual tenure track and non-tenure track faculty.
• When: The committee will only assess achievements in teaching while the nominee is employed at Georgia Southern. Emphasis will be on achievements within the last 3 years.

Faculty Award of Distinction in Service

• What: Recognizes significant determination and innovation in helping the college, department, university, and/or the community carry out its mission. Service can take many forms, and can include things like effectively chairing committees, engagement with shared governance, significant contributions to professional organizations, work with conferences, and programming that encourages vibrant communities.
• Who: The committee will accept nominations for individual tenure track and non-tenure track faculty.
• When: The committee will only assess achievements in service while the nominee is employed at Georgia Southern. Emphasis will be on achievements within the last 3 years.

Faculty Award of Distinction in Collaboration

• What: This award recognizes collaborative work among multiple faculty members in any one of the university pillars: teaching, scholarship and creativity, student success, professional development, and service. Nominations might be for a multi-authored piece of research, creative work, artistic production, a rebuilt curriculum or teaching method, or a larger service project.
• Who: The committee will accept nominations for two to three tenure track and/or non-tenure track faculty at Georgia Southern University who have collaborated together on a project.
• When: The committee will only assess achievements in collaboration while the nominee is employed at Georgia Southern. Emphasis will be on achievements within the last 5 years.

The Awards Process

1. You can begin the nomination process by heading over to the nomination website.
   • On the nomination website, you can submit up to one name for each of the available awards. Self-nominations are permitted. Nominations must be submitted by Monday, March 9.
2. Once nominations are submitted, the nominee will be contacted by the committee and asked if they would like to participate in the awards process. Although that means “surprise nominations” are not really possible, in the past we’ve found that making sure everyone involved wants to participate makes things a lot more enjoyable all around. We ask that you accept or decline any nomination by Friday, March 13.
3. For nominees: If you choose to accept the nomination, you will be asked to write a short letter (no more than 1 single-spaced page please) explaining why you think you’re a good fit for the award.
   • For nominators: If your nominee accepts their nomination, you too will be asked to write a short letter (no more than 1 page please) explaining why you nominated them for the award and why they should win.
4. A Google folder will be opened up and shared with the nominee, who will be able to upload their CV and supporting materials. The committee asks that the supporting materials be related to the nature of the given award, and we ask you to limit the supporting materials to five (5) items. The items may be evaluations, outside websites, creative works, published research, grant proposals, videos, etc. Please do not upload an entire portfolio.
5. After the committee deliberates, you will be informed via email of the outcome. If you were picked as a winner, you will be asked to please attend the end-of-year CAH faculty meeting to receive your award and praise.