V. 11-4-2017

Outstanding Mentor AwardApplication for EKU’s College of Justice & Safety

Eastern Kentucky University prides itself as a supportive campus where students are mentored by faculty. EKU values faculty-student engagement, and we want to be able to support faculty-student research and award faculty who excel at mentoring students.

The Outstanding Mentor Award (OMA) increases the scholarship productivity of both students and faculty by providing professional development fundsfor faculty members who have demonstrated consistent and significant mentorship opportunities with students over the past three years. Those funds must be used to further mentorship with students.

Faculty members who wish to apply for the Outstanding Mentor Award will be asked to submit an application as well as documentation that provide evidence of their mentorship activitiesover the last three years.

Applications willinclude the following:

  • A teaching philosophy regarding mentorship
  • A description of past mentorship activitiesover only the last three years
  • A proposal for how the faculty member would use her/hisawarded funds for further mentorship with students, including a budget for up to $3,000.
  • A letter of support from the chair of the applicant’s department
  • A letter of support from one of the applicant’s mentees

Activities that will count toward past mentorship activities can include, but are not limited to:

  • Supervised independent study, and senior/graduate thesis projects
  • Presentations, performances and exhibitions with student(s) at state, regional, national or international conferences (with student co-authors)
  • Publications in student and professional journals (with student co-authors)
  • Other accepted and documented forms of student scholarship
  • Mentoring experiences unique to the discipline for which the mentees are preparing

Principle Judging Criteria includes: (categories have overlap)

  • History of great mentoring
  • Completeness of the application
  • Proposed application of funds (be sure the application of funds is student-centered)
  • Type of mentoring activities proposed
  • Proposed number of students benefited
  • Presentation of application (format, professionalism, etc.)

Submitting your Application: Please submit all documents via e-mail attachmentby February 1, 2018 to Jim Larsgaard at

Post-Award Follow up Report Required

Recipients of the Outstanding Mentor Award will be required to submit a report of benefits realized through the mentoring processes and the use and benefits of the expended funds during the 12 months following the award. The report will be requested during a time period that is acceptable to the award recipient.

The report of accomplishments should include, but not be limited to the following:

  • Primary mentor/mentee relevant experiences
  • Number of mentees who benefited from these experiences
  • Generalized accounting of the use of funds

Miscellaneous Information:

Recipients of the Outstanding Mentor Award are eligible to receive this award only once, during the three year period following receiving the award.

Five judges will be requested to serve on the judging committee to identify the recipient of the Outstanding Mentor Award. Department Chairs from each School will have input for judge selection. Applicants are not eligible to serve on the judging committee.

The Outstanding MentorAward will have several benefits for the University:

  • Reward and recognize faculty members who are already EKU’s top mentors
  • Incentivize mentorships, which will emphasize their importance to other faculty
  • Create further opportunities for mentorships
  • Make mentorships more visible to those outside of EKU, including populations targeted for recruitment (e.g., international students)
  • Create the “one great professor” experience for more students, which is linked to academic motivation and retention
  • Position EKU as a mentoring school for undergraduate and graduate students, which is one of the unique qualities of the university

Calendar of OMA Events (Dates are approximate)

  • Announcement of beginning the OMA Award process – November 10
  • Applications are available on our CJS Web site
  • Applications Accepted Beginning November 10
  • Application Annual Due Date – February 1
  • OMA AwardeeAnnounced -SecondWeek of February
  • OMA Plaque awarded to the winner at the spring Awards Ceremony
  • Report of benefits realized and use of funds due May 1 (or appropriate date as requested by the awardee) of the year following the availability of funds for the awardee or at an acceptable date for the awardee

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