Note:  The Sloan-C Awards and Recognition Committee has also issued a Call for Nominations for the 2011 Ralph E. Gomory Award for Quality Online Education and a Call for Nominations for the 2011 A. Frank Mayadas Leadership Award.

CALL FOR NOMINATIONS

The Awards and Recognition Committee of the Sloan Consortium (Sloan-C) invites nominations for the Sloan-C 2011 awards for outstanding contributions to the field of online learning.  The 2011 awards will be presented during the 17th Annual Sloan-C International Conference on Online Learning in Orlando, Florida, on Thursday, November 10, 2011.  Individual awards consist of a commemorative plaque and a check for $2000; institutional awards consist of a commemorative plaque only.  The award categories are:

• Excellence in Online Teaching (Individual)
• Outstanding Achievement in Online Education by an Individual
• Outstanding Online Program
• Excellence in Faculty Development for Online Teaching
• Excellence in Institution-Wide Online Education

More information about past recipients of the Sloan-C Awards can be found at:

http://www.sloanconsortium.org/aboutus/awards

PROCEDURAL INFORMATION:

1.  SUBMISSION AND DUE DATE

All nominations must be submitted by August 15, 2011 - Nomination Forms

YOU MUST BE LOGGED IN TO ACCESS THESE FORMS.
Note: You don't have to complete the whole form right away.  After you submitted a nomination, you will be able to edit/complete it. You will see a block in the left side bar with a link  to your nomination.

Note: Please review the submission form before preparing a nomination and note the word limit restrictions for the submission materials required.  Also, please note that incomplete submissions will not be considered.

2.  GENERAL INFORMATION - All nominations must include the following information: (1) award category; (2) complete contact information for organization or individual nominated (e.g., name, title, organization, address, phone, e-mail); and (3) contact name and information for individual submitting the nomination.  Nominations for individual awards must be made by an institutional representative other than the nominee, and each institution may only nominate one individual for each award.

3.  ELIGIBILITY - Nominees for the individual teaching award must be employed by a Sloan-C member institution or be individual members of Sloan-C; nominees for the individual achievement award must be individual members of Sloan-C.  Program and institutional awards are also limited to Sloan-C member institutions and organizations.  Although previous recipients of Sloan-C awards are eligible to be nominated again, it will be exceptional and unusual for an individual or institution to receive an award again in the same category.

4.  DESCRIPTION OF AWARDS, REQUIRED MATERIALS, AND AWARDS CRITERIA

Excellence in Online Teaching

The purpose of this award is to recognize an outstanding individual who has creatively utilized the ALN approach to online learning.  The recipient must have designed and taught one or more online courses with an imaginative approach, well-designed course materials and instructional strategies, and a demonstrated rapport with the course participants.  The recipient must also document effectiveness in achieving desired learning outcomes in the online course(s).

The nomination should include the following supporting documentation:

• A general description of the online course(s) taught;
• Descriptions of the online teaching approaches utilized;
• Up to three examples of well-designed course materials that embody effective teaching strategies;
• Evidence of effectiveness in achieving desired learning outcomes in the online course(s) and demonstrated rapport with learners and other course participants; and
• Three to five letters of support, including letters from at least one student, one faculty colleague, and one administrator.

Award Criteria:

Imaginative Approach: The nominee has implemented a creative approach to one or more emerging instructional challenges.
Quality of Course Materials and Instructional Strategies: The nominee has created well-designed course materials and utilized appropriate instructional strategies.
Learner Satisfaction: The nominee has demonstrated rapport with learners as well as other course participants.
Effective Learning Outcomes: The nominee has demonstrated effectiveness in achieving desired learning outcomes in the online course(s).
Supporting Letters:  The supporting letters address the qualifications of the nominee as an outstanding online teacher.

Outstanding Achievement in Online Education by an Individual

The purpose of this award is to recognize an individual who has demonstrated extraordinary achievements to the field of online education.  The recipient of this award should be known for scholarly research and writing, leadership activities, service, and/or contributions to advancing the field of online education.

The nomination should include the following supporting documentation:

• The nominee's vita;
• A detailed description of his or her individual achievements related to online education and how they fulfill the award criteria; and
• Three or more letters of support, including letters from at least one faculty colleague and one administrator.

Award Criteria:

Scholarly Research and Writing: The nominee has published work that has increased knowledge, and/or contributed to improving practice for the scholarly and/or practitioner communities within the field of online education.
Leadership Activities: The nominee has led or participated in activities that demonstrate leadership in the field at the institutional, local, regional, national, and/or international level.
Service: The nominee has performed a significant number and variety of activities that demonstrate service to the field and its constituent community.
Contributions to Advancing the Field: The nominee has made additional contributions that have substantively contributed to the overall advancement of online education.
Supporting Letters:  The supporting letters address the nominee's achievements in the field of online education.

Outstanding Online Program

The purpose of this award is to recognize an institution that offers an outstanding online certificate, degree, or continuing education program.  The ideal recipient of this award would be an educational program that has a proven record of excellence, as demonstrated by its success in providing expanded access, learning effectiveness, and high levels of student and faculty satisfaction, in a cost-effective manner.

The nomination should include the following supporting documentation:

• A detailed description of the online program that summarizes the program and provides evidence of how the program meets the award criteria (see below);
• A URL and necessary passwords to access the program's website and sample courses (if passwords cannot be supplied due to security or privacy concerns, links to websites with screenshots demonstrating key features of these courses will be acceptable);
• Three or more letters of support, including letters from at least one student, one faculty member, and one administrator.

Award Criteria:

Access: The program has improved access to education by expanding opportunities and/or reducing barriers.
Learning Effectiveness: The program demonstrates effectiveness in producing learning outcomes which are consistent with learner needs and representative of the distinctive quality of the institution.
Cost Effectiveness: The program is provided in a manner that is cost-effective for the institution and provides educational value for learners and other stakeholders.
Student Satisfaction: Learners who complete the program or substantial portion of it express satisfaction with their learning experience, including course rigor and fairness, instructor and peer interaction, and provision of support services.
Faculty Satisfaction: Faculty who teach in the program find the online teaching experience to be personally rewarding and professionally beneficial.
Supporting Letters:  The supporting letters address the quality of the online program in the Sloan-C Pillar areas.

Excellence in Faculty Development for Online Teaching

The purpose of this award is to recognize an institution that has developed and delivered an outstanding program for faculty professional development in online teaching.  The ideal recipient of this award would be an institution-wide program that has had a positive impact on a significant number of faculty, leading to these faculty teaching large numbers of high-quality online courses, while maintaining a high degree of faculty satisfaction.

The nomination should include the following supporting documentation:

• A detailed description of the faculty development program that summarizes the program structure and provides evidence of how the program meets the award criteria (see below);
• A URL and necessary passwords to access the program's website and sample courses, if any (if passwords cannot be supplied due to security or privacy concerns, links to a website with screenshots of exemplary activities will be acceptable);
• Faculty satisfaction survey results or other measure(s) showing a high degree of faculty satisfaction; and
• Three or more letters of support, including letters from at least one faculty member and one administrator.

Award Criteria:

Effectiveness: The program has led to faculty teaching large numbers of high-quality online courses.
Scope of Impact: The program has been implemented institution-wide or within a significantly large segment of the institution.
Faculty Satisfaction: The program has maintained a high level of faculty satisfaction.
Supporting Letters:  The supporting letters address the quality and effectiveness of the faculty development program.

Excellence in Institution-Wide Online Education

The purpose of this award is to recognize an institution that has designed and implemented an outstanding and comprehensive online learning curriculum.  The institution's online programs must be of demonstrably high quality.  The ideal recipient would be an institution offering multiple regional or national online learning programs in diverse disciplines, including degree, certificate, and continuing education programs.  The scope and scale of the online learning programs offered should be consistent with the scope and scale of the institution itself.

The nomination should include the following supporting documentation:

• A detailed description of the program that indicates its degree of comprehensiveness and provides evidence of how the program meets the award criteria (see below).
• The URL of the website for the institution's online programs.
• Three or more letters of support, including letters from at least one student, one faculty member, and one administrator.

Award Criteria:

Scale and Scope of Offerings: The institution offers multiple online learning programs available on a regional or national scale in a proportion consistent with the institution’s scope and scale.
Diversity of Offerings: The institution offers a variety of programs in diverse disciplines that are representative of the institution’s total offerings.
Appropriateness of Offerings: The institution offers online learning programs at a variety of levels (degree, certificate, continuing education) that meet demonstrable needs.
Quality of Offerings: The institution demonstrates how its online learning offerings improve learning, access, faculty and student satisfaction in a cost-effective, affordable manner.
Supporting Letters:  The supporting letters address the quality, scale, and breadth of the institution's online program.

For additional information, please contact:

Prof. Burks Oakley II
Chair, Sloan-C Awards Selection Committee
E-mail:  burks.oakley@sloanconsortium.org