Gilian Sherwin Alumni Award for Excellence in Teaching

The Gilian Sherwin Alumni Award is the highest honour for teaching excellence at the University of Victoria for Sessional Lecturers, Lab Instructors, and Senior Lab Instructors.

The Gilian Sherwin Alumni Award for Excellence in Teaching bears the name of a former Senior Lab Instructor in the Geography department who, for 21 years, was a strong supporter of better teaching at the university, an active member of the advisory committee of the Division of Learning and Teaching Support and Innovation (LTSI), and a regular participant in the training of teaching assistants. This award is a tribute to Gilian Sherwin’s commitment to the art of teaching and the influence she had on many students and colleagues

Since 1989, the UVic Alumni Association has been pleased to honour the outstanding level of teaching offered by the university’s faculty and instructors. We are proud of our role in recognizing UVic teaching of the highest calibre. The Office of the Vice-President Academic and Provost administers the award on behalf of the Alumni Association.

Eligibility

This award is open to:

• All Sessional Lecturers, Lab Instructors, and Senior Lab Instructors (continuing and term). These eligibility criteria reflect the fact that this is the highest award for teaching excellence at the University of Victoria at this level.

Nominees must:

• • Have held a minimum of 0.5 FTE position, for the past three years;
  • Have taught and currently teach credit-based courses;
  • Be the only nomination from their academic unit (i.e., only one new nomination per academic unit will be considered).

Award criteria

Nominations will be assessed based on evidence of outstanding contributions in both teaching and educational leadership:

• Promotes student-centred learning in practices that actively engage students in the learning process and are focused on learning and mentoring beyond the classroom
• Creatively enhances teaching by including innovative teaching methods and learning strategies, effective assignment development, incorporation of educational technologies and providing formative assessment
• Provides innovative course design/redesign and engagement in curriculum development and is actively engaged in scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) research, collaborating with peers, students, and TAs
• Is an educational leader within and beyond the university, involved in activities such as: participating in learning and teaching related committees or presentations, serving as a consultant on government policy bodies, writing media reviews or articles, publishing in academic journals, or obtaining grants for teaching and learning research

Nomination components

Submit your nomination through the online form. Submit all the nomination components in one combined PDF.

Nominee bio

Include a summary of the nominee’s distinctive contributions, including their teaching practices and philosophy. This will be used to brief the adjudicators and for promotional purposes if the nominee is the successful candidate. 100 words maximum.

Nomination letter

A signed written statement including:

• teaching practices
• teaching philosophy
• impact of teaching on student learning specific to award criteria

Two pages maximum with 12pt font, 1-inch margins.

Two letters of support

• At least one of the two letters of support must be written primarily by a former student and can include additional authors, including students or faculty members. 
• The second letter may to be from faculty, staff, community partners or alumni, or another former student.
• Letters are to address nominees' effective teaching practices (i.e., student engagement, student learning, value of the courses to their overall program, effective teaching strategies, creativity in course design, teaching inspired by research, student mentoring, and innovative or effective assignments.)

Each letter is two pages maximum with 12pt font, 1-inch margins.

Narrative Curriculum Vitae (CV)

A narrative CV, following the Tri-Agency guidelines. Please also include courses taught and relevant teaching awards.

• Tri-Agency narrative CV template and instructions

Five pages maximum with 12pt font, 1-inch margins.

Demonstration of Excellence in Teaching (NEW)

A demonstration of excellence in teaching, presented as a selectively curated set of evidence demonstrating the impact of the nominee's teaching on student learning. The nomination letter should explicitly reference the evidence included in this supporting document, as well as clearly connect it to the award criteria. 

Appropriate evidence or demonstration may include excerpts or selections from:

• course syllabi
• assignment descriptions and rubrics
• lesson plans or instructional materials
• samples of current work
• photos of cultural or creative works
• transcript excerpts from videos or oral submissions
• excerpts from cultural stories or photo essays
• community-based validation (e.g., evidence of relationships, demonstrated impact, community voice) 

Two pages maximum with 12pt font, 1-inch margins.