The Academy of Distinguished Teaching (ADT) at UCR, in partnership with the Division of Undergraduate Education, is soliciting nominations for the 2026 Inaugural Graduate Student/Postdoc Instructor of Record Award. All graduate students and postdocs who have served as the official Instructor of Record (Associate In) for a complete course in either the regular academic year or one summer term are eligible to apply.

The Graduate Student/Postdoc Instructor of Record Award honors instructors who are early in their teaching careers that demonstrate their commitment to teaching. Hallmarks of successful nominees are:

1. passion and devotion to the teaching mission and
2. evidence of utilizing evidence-based best practices in teaching that support the success of all students. 

Awardee(s) will receive a one-time research stipend in the amount of $1,500. Awardee(s) will be honored at the Celebration of Teaching reception on a Wednesday near the end of May 2026 (exact date TBD). Additionally, winners will be invited to present on their award-winning teaching at the ADT-sponsored campus-wide Symposium on Teaching Excellence and Innovation, to be held in AY 2026-2027.

Awardee(s) will be selected by members of the Academy of Distinguished Teaching. The deadline for receipt of application materials is April 3rd, 2026, and awardees will be announced in Spring Quarter.

Instructions for assembly and submission of the nomination file:

1. One faculty member, serving as the lead nominator, should assemble all documents (See #2 below) into a single PDF file. Requests for letters of support must be made by the person assembling the file, although these requests may be made in consultation with the nominee. The nomination file should be sent to the UCR Academy of Distinguished Teaching, using the linked Google form by April 3, 2026.
   Nomination submission form
2. Nominations should include the following in a single PDF file in this specific order:
   1. A nomination letter from a faculty member who is taking the lead in assembling the nomination package. Self-nominations will also be considered and should be used as the nomination letter itself.
   2. The nominee's self-statement, not to exceed two pages, which details their teaching philosophy/approach, the community engaged aspects of their teaching strategies, and data-driven evidence of impact of these approaches on student success. If the nominee's classroom instructional innovations or broader teaching-related activities address issues related to equity and/or inclusivity they are encouraged to highlight these in the statement as well.
   3. Up to five letters of support from faculty, students, or individuals who can provide additional evidence of community engaged teaching.
   4. Representative student numerical and narrative evaluations for courses taught at UCR that provide evidence of community engaged teaching.
       

For any questions about the award and/or nominations, please contact Kyle Ingram, Chair of the ADT Awards Committee (kingram@ucr.edu).