Adjunct Teaching Excellence Awards

Outstanding teaching is an integral part of Mason’s mission and is deserving of significant recognition. The Teaching Excellence Awards are both institutional recognition and a monetary acknowledgment of the significant work that faculty members devote to course planning and preparation; curriculum development; and innovative teaching, advising, and mentoring. We urge program and department leads and other administrators to take this opportunity to recognize teaching excellence at Mason by nominating an adjunct that you view as an outstanding educator.

The 2026 Adjunct Teaching Excellence Award Nominations are open!

Nomination Process:

The Adjunct Faculty Teaching Excellence Award recognizes the outstanding teaching of adjunct faculty while offering a slightly different selection process from our original Teaching Excellence Awards. The evaluation criteria have been refined to focus on the teaching work of adjuncts, and the portfolio process is streamlined accordingly. This award is open to all adjunct faculty members who are currently teaching a course or who taught at least one course during the past current academic year who also have fully completed at least 6 semesters of teaching experience at Mason. Semesters of teaching do not need to be consecutive to meet eligibility requirements. (Nominators do not need to confirm a faculty member’s eligibility prior to submitting a nomination.)

Nominations can be from administrators (department chair, program director, teaching unit coordinator, dean, etc.), colleagues, or current or former students.

Faculty will be evaluated on the following criteria for teaching excellence:

1. Growth and development as an educator
2. Student and learner engagement
3. Assessment of student learning and achievement
4. Teaching effectiveness and impact

The nomination form will prompt you for answers to three questions about the faculty member’s teaching; you may add more information if you wish. If you have questions or would like further information, please contact us.

Criteria:

Submissions will be evaluated according to the following guidelines:

• Teaching Portfolio

The Selection Process:

1. Nominations will be accepted through early November.
2. Nominees will be invited to provide a condensed teaching portfolio by early February.
3. The Adjunct Faculty Teaching Excellence Award winner will be selected by early April.
4. Our recognition ceremony for all our award winners will be in April. Winners receive a stipend as well as formal recognition; Teachers of Distinction will also be recognized at this ceremony.

A NOTE TO NOMINEES: We will be using your official Mason email address to communicate throughout the selection process. Please be sure to check it regularly. Please email [email protected] if you have any questions.