Nominees for the research/creativity award will be screened by the Research and Grants Committee. Ex-officio member(s) may participate in the deliberations of the committee, but may not vote on the nominees. If there are suitable nominations, the committee will recommend one junior faculty winner and one senior faculty winner.
Nominations Due: September 8, 2026
Nominees Notified: September 10, 2026
Dossier Due: October 16, 2026
Award Recognition: Holiday Awards Luncheon
Note: Please note that due to recent changes in academic structure, the 2026 Awards Process will be proceeding on a consolidated timeline for this year only. A call for nominations using a more expanded timeline for the 2027-2028 Awards will go out in March 2027.>
Any member of the IU 51ÁÔÆæ community may nominate a faculty member for this award. In addition, following the selection of an awardee for any given year, the selection committee may forward to the next year’s committee the credentials of any candidates it believes to be worthy of further consideration.
Outstanding research or creative work may be demonstrated in a variety of ways, including, but not limited to, receiving critical acclaim or a major national or international prize, sustaining a level of productivity over an extended period that is above average in both quantity and quality, or completing a project that represents a significant or pioneering contribution to a discipline.
Evidence of achievement will vary based on the nature of the work but may include samples of recent or outstanding work, such as books, collections of reprints, audio or video recordings, exhibitions, performances, or other digital media. Additional evidence may include reviews in scholarly journals or major media outlets, letters from internal or external colleagues, press coverage, documentation of awards or recognition, and a brief statement outlining the candidate's overall plan and vision for future research or creative activity.
Senior Faculty Award
For the Senior Faculty Distinguished Research & Creativity Award, the committee will evaluate a candidate's overall record of achievement, with particular emphasis on sustained excellence and impact at IU 51ÁÔÆæ. While the award recognizes a consistent record of outstanding performance, the committee may also consider particularly notable accomplishments in a given year and the extended timelines often associated with significant research and creative projects.
Junior Faculty Award
The Junior Faculty Distinguished Research & Creativity Award recognizes both outstanding achievement and future promise in the research or creative work of untenured faculty. The committee will consider primarily the record compiled at IU 51ÁÔÆæ while also recognizing significant prior accomplishments when the resulting work was completed, published, exhibited, or otherwise recognized after joining the IU 51ÁÔÆæ faculty.
Any member of the IU 51ÁÔÆæ community may nominate a faculty member for this award. In addition, following the selection of an awardee for any given year, the selection committee may forward to the next year’s committee the credentials of any candidates it believes to be worthy of further consideration.
Upon nomination, candidates will be invited to submit materials via a dossier. Dossiers should be no longer than 50 pages, including the cover sheet but excluding the Curriculum Vitae and letters of support, and should be uploaded to a Teams folder provided to the nominees. It is not necessary or desirable to include the entire body of the candidate’s work in the file; emphasis should be placed on documenting quantity and illustrating quality.
Because the committee and the candidates will be from a variety of disciplines, the committee may find it necessary to ask some candidates for additional information or material, or to seek external evaluation. Such requests or lack of them are not to be interpreted as favorable or unfavorable to a given candidate.
In addition to public recognition, winners will be awarded a one-time stipend of $1,000.
The winner of this award becomes ineligible to win again for a period of ten years. Subsequent awards should be based on the faculty member’s record of achievement since the time of the previous award. A faculty member who has been nominated, but not selected for an award may be re-nominated at any time.
In addition to public recognition, winners will be awarded a one-time stipend of $500.
The winner of this award is ineligible to win again. A faculty member who has been nominated, but not selected for the award may be re-nominated so long as he or she has not been granted tenure in the interim.
