Faculty Honors

Faculty Scholar Medals

Each year a faculty award for excellence in scholarship, research, and the arts honors those who have excelled in creative work and expresses the University's gratitude and appreciation for their achievements.

The awards are given in recognition of scholarly or creative excellence represented by a single contribution or a series of contributions around a coherent theme. The contribution may be original basic research in any area of science; the contribution may represent application of knowledge in the creation of a process or device useful to society; the contribution may be in any area of the arts or humanities such as poetry, musical composition, design, sculpture, paintings, ceramics, theatre arts, and photography.

Candidates are considered annually in each of the following areas:

• Arts and humanities
• Engineering
• Life and health sciences
• Physical sciences
• Social and behavioral sciences

The award in each area will consist of a medal and a check for $2,000. This award program will be provided from undesignated gifts to the University. Peer committees will review nominations. The prime criterion will be scholarly or creative excellence. Each of the five committees may or may not recommend to the President a medalist for recognition in a given year.

The medal will include an engraved plate indicating the following information:

• Presented to
  (Jane Doe)
  Arts and Humanities
  200__

Criteria and Eligibility

Members of the University as defined for the electorate of the Senate are eligible with the exception of those who have already received the medal, those designated as Evan Pugh Professors and those holding endowed chair positions. With reference to the booklet, "Constitution By-Laws and Standing Rules of the University Faculty Senate," "University faculty" means all persons who are not candidates for degrees at Penn State who hold full-time academic appointments, and who fall into one of the following categories: those holding professional, research (excluding non-continuing research appointees), or librarian titles and those who are full-time instructors or assistant librarians.

The attainment for which the candidate is to be honored shall have occurred or culminated during the five years preceding the nomination for the award.

The award will be made solely on the basis of scholarly or creative achievement. It should not be anticipated that awards will be made in all five categories every year.

Nomination Procedure

Annually in September, the President will invite nominations from peers in the five areas in all academic units in the University. Suitable biographical data must accompany each nomination. Nomination materials should include: a letter from the nominator endorsing the candidate, a complete vita, reprints and published book reviews of the key works, a detailed description of the achievement itself, credible outside evaluations from faculty at peer institutions which substantiate the claim of the national or international importance, and evidence of superior scholarly or creative accomplishments occurring or culminating in the past five years (brief identification notes on the authors of the letters should be furnished). The nominations should be provided electronically, preferably as PDF files. If hardcopy reprints will be submitted, please provide six copies. In those cases where submission of a portfolio would be appropriate please submit one copy, and it will be shared with the members of the selection panel. Nominations received by the deadline will be assigned to the appropriate area review panel. Each selection panel will review the nomination materials and make one of the following recommendations to the President:

• Two or three names in priority-ranked order.
• No award if suitable candidates are not available, in the judgment of the committee.

Selection Panels

In the fall of each year the President will appoint five selection panels, one in each of the five main scholarly areas. Each panel will consist of five to seven members. A majority shall be faculty who are recognized scholars in that area. Insofar as possible, panels should include a Lindback teaching awardee and an Evan Pugh professor. In addition to internal representation, members may be drawn from outside the University.

Chairs of the Graduate Council Committee on Graduate Research and the Senate Committee on Research will be asked to recommend faculty and academic administrators for the five panels. The terms of appointment are for three years.

Awards Ceremony

The awards will be presented annually during the University awards program held each spring.

Faculty Scholar Medal winners

2009   2008   2007
2006   2005   2004   2003   2002   2001   2000   1999   1998   1997   1996   1995   1994
1993   1992   1991   1990   1989   1988   1987   1986   1985   1984   1983   1982   1981