Educational Excellence in the Community

All benefits-based faculty, across all academic units, are eligible. Applications may be based on a one-semester experience of educational excellence in the community. However, preference will be given to applicants whose work--whether in a single project/approach or a number of projects--extends across multiple semesters.

1. August-October: Applications are open.
2. October: Nominations and Applications are due.
3. November-December: Applications are scored and a recipient is selected.
4. April: Recipient is honored at a university-wide reception.

Please see the Application Instructions tab for this academic year's specific dates.

To nominate a colleague, please send an email to the CEE (cee@sandiego.edu) with the faculty member’s name, department/unit, course (if known) and a brief statement about why you would like to nominate them. The nomination entry deadline has been extended to Monday, November 2, 2026. Nominees will be notified and encouraged to apply.

To apply, please prepare the materials listed below and submit them using your preferred method—either by completing the Google Form or emailing your materials directly to the CEE at cee@sandiego.edu. Application deadline has been extended to Monday, Novemeber 2, 2026.

Application Materials to Prepare:

1. Faculty member’s name, title, department, and academic unit, as well as the course(s) for which the faculty member has developed activities, projects, and/or approaches relevant to this award, along with the name of the community partner(s) worked with.
2. A written statement (2-3 pages single-spaced) or a video narrative (10 minutes maximum), which explains the nominee's work in relation to educational excellence in the community. The letter/video narrative should address the following five questions, which align with the criteria listed above, citing specific examples:
   1. In what ways is your approach to community engagement innovative and original?
   2. How does your project create positive impact in the community or contribute to the public good?
   3. What role did your community partner(s) have in the creation of the project and determining its outcomes, and in what ways is the project mutually beneficial and sustainable into the future?
   4. What evidence do you have of students' civic learning from this community experience, and how can the project be modified for improvement in the future?
   5. How is your community experience integrated into the overall curricular outcomes for the course and the program?
3. A letter of support (1-2 pages single-spaced) or a short video narrative from an off-campus community partner that addresses the positive impact of the project, how the project is sustainable into the future, and the innovative features of the project. (This letter/video may be sent directly by the community partner
   to cee@sandiego.edu).
4. Curriculum vitae

A selection committee, composed of members of the Faculty Council on Community Engagement and representatives of the CEE, will assess the applications based on the award scoring rubric (see Rubric tab for details). The awardee will be notified in December.

Questions about eligibility, the application process, or the selection process, should be directed to Rhea Webb, CEE Assistant Director, via email, at rwebb_5@sandiego.edu or John Loggins, Director of Community Engaged Learning, via email, at jloggins@sandiego.edu.

Rubric for the EEC award

• Left axis includes the following 5 categories: 1. Innovation/Originality. 2. Impact/Benefit to Community and Public Good. 3. Community Partnership(s). 4. Impact/Benefit to Student Learning. 5. Curricular Strength and Integration.
• On the rubric's top axis, three columns that indicate the score based on high evidence, average evidence, and zero evidence.

Total Score ______/10 Name of Faculty Member: _______________________________________

Downloadable Rubric