Faculty and Staff Awards

Nominations for the 2025 Faculty and Staff Awards are now open and will close on September 19. Winners of 2025 awards will be recognized at the College of IST's Award Ceremony and Holiday Celebration on December 17 at Hintz Family Alumni Center.

Review individual award criteria and submit your nominations below.

Faculty and Staff Awards

The Dean’s Honor award is a special award that was created by the Dean to recognize an outstanding faculty and/or staff member. The award was created in 2016.

The criteria for the award:

Be an outstanding collaborator to produce positive results; demonstrate an intense commitment to providing excellent service to co-workers, faculty, and students; maintain perseverance in the face of adversity with the goal of advancing important initiatives that make the college a better place to work or study.

The nomination process for this award is separate from the IST Faculty and Staff Awards process. If you would like to recommend a nominee for this award, please reach out to an Associate or Assistant Dean or the Chief of Staff to review and collaborate on the nomination. The Dean will review the nominations and determine if nominees are worthy of being recognized.

The amount of a one-time supplemental compensation ranges from $1,000-$1,500 per award, which will be determined by the Dean. Nominations will be accepted at any point during the year; recipients will be recognized at the annual awards ceremony following their award.

Nomination Form

This award is given to a faculty and/or staff member who, through their own commitments and leadership, helped to foster a sense of community within the college. The recipient may have contributed to human causes or may have engaged in impactful sustainability efforts. This person is someone who maintains a positive perspective, consistently goes above and beyond, and makes an impact with their work. The recipient(s) will be given a cash award of $500 along with a certificate of achievement. The college is not obligated to make an award every year.

Eligibility: Nominees must be employed by the College of IST for a minimum of one year as of the nomination deadline. Any regular (as defined in policy HR34) IST staff members of the College of Information Sciences and Technology at University Park are eligible for the award. Term of employment is based on most recent IST date of hire (consecutive time) for full-time faculty and staff. Individuals that work 75% FTE are eligible. This does not include: wage, FT2, SUPP, adjunct, post-doc, visiting or emeritus. Individuals, who provide service to IST but their primary work unit (development, finance, human resources, etc.), is outside of IST are eligible. Award winners from the previous year are not eligible for that particular award the following year.

Selection Criteria: The evaluation will be based upon the supporting statement and examples of how the nominee has helped build a community within the college.

Nomination: Any staff or faculty member may bring forward one nominee. Self-nominations will be accepted. Nominators will be responsible for assembling support materials (including support statement).

Requirements:

A completed nomination form that includes a brief statement (300-word limit) supporting your reasoning for this award nomination
One additional supporting statement (300-word limit) from an individual within the college.
Supplemental materials will not be accepted.

Selection Process: The nomination statements will be reviewed, and the recipients shall be selected by the IST Dean's Leadership Team. Any staff that are members of the Dean’s Leadership Team and nominated for the award will be recused from the discussions and decisions. The Dean has the authority to make changes to these guidelines.

Nomination Form

This award is given to a faculty and/or staff member who significantly contributed to making the College of IST a welcoming climate to foster diversity and promote equity. Recipients may demonstrate this commitment across a range of possibilities, including efforts to support student- or staff-centered inclusion initiatives; the recruitment and retention of diverse faculty, staff, and/or students; multicultural programming or related initiatives; and/or community outreach activities. The recipient(s) will be given a cash award of $500 along with a certificate. The college is not obligated to make an award every year.

Eligibility: Nominees must be employed by the College of IST for a minimum of one year as of the nomination deadline. Any regular (as defined in policy HR34) IST staff members of the College of Information Sciences and Technology at University Park are eligible for the award. Term of employment is based on most recent IST date of hire (consecutive time) for full-time faculty and staff. Individuals that work 75% FTE are eligible. This does not include: wage, FT2, SUPP, adjunct, post-doc, visiting or emeritus. Individuals, who provide service to IST, but their primary work unit (development, finance, human resources, etc.), is outside of IST are eligible. Award winners from the previous year are not eligible for that particular award the following year.

Selection Criteria: The evaluation will be based upon the supporting statement and examples of how the nominee has contributed in making the College of IST a welcoming climate to foster diversity and promote equity.

Requirements:

A completed nomination form that includes a brief statement (300-word limit) supporting your reasoning for this award nomination
One additional supporting statement (300-word limit) from an individual within the college.
Supplemental materials will not be accepted.

Staff Awards

Nomination Form

This award is given to a staff member or team of staff who consistently provides high-quality service to the college. The recipient of this award demonstrates a level of performance, methods, and achievements that exemplify the highest standards of support to the college and its varied personnel, including administration, alumni, faculty, staff, students and visitors. The recipient will be given a cash award of $500 along with a certificate. In the case of a team award, the team will receive a cash award of $500 that will be equally divided among the team with no team member receiving less than $100. The college is not obligated to make an award every year.

Eligibility: Nominees must be employed by the College of IST for a minimum of one year as of the nomination deadline. Any full-time IST staff members (as defined in policy HR34) at University Park are eligible for the award. Term of employment is based on most recent IST date of hire (consecutive time) for full-time faculty and staff. Individuals that work 75% FTE are eligible. This does not include: wage, FT2, SUPP, adjunct, post-doc, visiting or emeritus. Individuals, who provide service to IST, but their primary work unit (development, finance, human resources, etc.), is outside of IST are eligible. Award winners from the previous year are not eligible for that particular award the following year.

Selection Criteria: The evaluation will be based upon the supporting statement and examples of the nominee's high standards of customer service to the college and its varied clientele including staff, administration, faculty, students and visitors to the college.

Requirements:

A completed nomination form that includes a brief statement (300-word limit) supporting your reasoning for this award nomination
One additional supporting statement (300-word limit) from an individual within the college.
Supplemental materials will not be accepted.

Selection Process: The nomination statements will be reviewed, and the recipients shall be selected by the IST Dean's Leadership Team. Any staff who are members of the Dean’s Leadership Team and nominated for the award will be recused from the discussions and decisions. The Dean has the authority to make changes to these guidelines.

Nomination Form

This award is given to a staff member whose work contributed to the completion of a major project or program. This project or program would not have been possible without the leadership and perseverance of this individual. Consideration may also be given to a staff member who consistently strives for excellence in their work and leadership. The recipient will be given a cash award of $500 along with a certificate. The college is not obligated to make an award every year.

Selection Criteria: The evaluation will be based upon the supporting statement and examples of either the nominee's leadership and perseverance toward the completion of a major project or program within the college, or the nominee's overall high standard of work and leadership.

Requirements:

A completed nomination form that includes a brief statement (300-word limit) supporting your reasoning for this award nomination
One additional supporting statement (300-word limit) from an individual within the college.
Supplemental materials will not be accepted.

Selection Process: The nomination statements will be reviewed and the recipients shall be selected by the IST Dean's Leadership Team. Any staff that are members of the Dean’s Leadership Team and nominated for the award will be recused from the discussions and decisions. The Dean has the authority to make changes to these guidelines.

Nomination Form

This award is given to a staff member whose performance on the job is exceptional and best exemplifies professionalism and dedication to the mission of the college and the University. This individual has the potential to make a significant impact not only on the College of IST but also the University as a whole. The recipient will be given a cash award of $500 along with a certificate. The college is not obligated to make an award every year.

Eligibility: Nominees must be employed by the College of IST for a minimum of six months as of the nomination deadline. Any full-time IST staff members (as defined in policy HR34) at University Park are eligible for the award. Term of employment is based on most recent IST date of hire (consecutive time) for full-time faculty and staff. Individuals that work 75% FTE are eligible. This does not include: wage, FT2, SUPP, adjunct, post-doc, visiting or emeritus. Individuals, who provide service to IST, but their primary work unit (development, finance, human resources, etc.) is outside of IST, are eligible. Award winners from the previous year are not eligible for that particular award the following year.

Selection Criteria: The evaluation will be based upon the supporting statement and examples of the nominee's exceptional performance, professionalism, and their potential to impact the College/University.

Requirements:

A completed nomination form that includes a brief statement (300-word limit) supporting your reasoning for this award nomination
One additional supporting statement (300-word limit) from an individual within the college.
Supplemental materials will not be accepted.

Faculty Awards

Nomination Form

This award recognizes those IST faculty members who show great promise and have demonstrated a consistent ability to provide a high-quality educational experience for our students through their teaching of residential or online courses. The recipient will be given a cash award of $500 and a certificate of accomplishment. The college is not obligated to make an award every year.

Eligibility: Those eligible for this award are any full-time faculty members of the College of Information Sciences and Technology with no more than six years of service and who teach courses within the College of IST.

Selection Criteria: SRTE scores will be reviewed and taken into consideration. Any faculty who are members of the committee and nominated for the award will be recused from the discussions and decisions. The Dean has the authority to make changes to the guidelines that are necessary to ensure the fulfillment of the above-stated objectives.

Requirements:

A completed nomination form that includes a brief statement (300-word limit) supporting your reasoning for this award nomination
One additional supporting statement (300-word limit) from an individual within the college.
Supplemental materials will not be accepted.

Nomination Form

This award recognizes those IST faculty members who consistently provide an exceptional learning environment for students in the classroom or online through their innovative teaching, commitment to learning, and creative interface. The recipient will be given a cash award of $500 and provided a $500 allotment to use for learning-enhancement initiatives, software purchase, student assistance, materials, or other related items. The awardee’s name will be placed as a permanent part of the award plaque displayed in the Westgate Building, and the awardee will be invited to present the McMurtry Lecture to the college community in the semester following the award.The recipient may receive the award only once every four years. The college is not obligated to make an award every year.

Eligibility: Those eligible for this award are any full-time faculty members of the College of Information Sciences and Technology who teach courses within the College of IST.

Selection Criteria: The evaluation will be based upon the faculty member’s use of innovative teaching techniques that could include, but not be limited to, such initiatives as new courses developed, the crafting of problems and exercises that promote learning, and/or innovative uses of pedagogy. Faculty who effectively incorporate team-based problem solving for the class, oral and written skill development, active approaches to learning, and on-line experiences to enhance their teaching will be given special consideration.

Requirements:

A completed nomination form that includes a brief statement (300-word limit) supporting your reasoning for this award nomination
One additional supporting statement (300-word limit) from an individual within the college.
Supplemental materials will not be accepted.

Nomination Form

This award recognizes the significance of a particular contribution by those IST faculty members at University Park who have produced innovative and outstanding research results, contributed to breakthrough and high-impact research, or demonstrated the potential to solve challenging research problems as an individual or in a collaborative team during the prior calendar year. The recipient will be given a cash award of $500 along with a certificate of accomplishment. The award will be given annually near the end of the spring semester. A recipient may receive the award up to two times. The College is not obligated to make an award every year.

Eligibility: Those eligible for this award are any IST faculty members in the College of Information Sciences and Technology at University Park with no more than six years of service. Nominees must be involved in advising graduate students.

Selection Criteria: In its selection, the committee should consider the faculty member’s research contribution and its impact, measured by supporting letters from colleagues, results of scholarly publications and their citation analysis, degree of research funding, or other appropriate metrics, etc.

Requirements:

A completed nomination form that includes a brief statement (300-word limit) supporting your reasoning for this award nomination
One additional supporting statement (300-word limit) from an individual within the college.
Supplemental materials will not be accepted.

Nomination Form

This award recognizes those IST faculty members who have achieved national and/or international recognition (individual, the college, and/or Penn State) for high-impact, innovative, and outstanding research that contributed to a significant advancement in the field of information sciences and technology. The recipient will be given a cash award of $500 along with a certificate of accomplishment. A recipient may receive the award only once. The college is not obligated to make an award every year.

Eligibility: Those eligible for this award are any full-time faculty members in the College of Information Sciences and Technology. Nominees must be involved in advising graduate students.

Selection Criteria: The evaluation will be based upon the evidence (e.g., citations) of the faculty member’s influence in a specified field of research and the overall impact of the faculty member’s research. The committee should consider originality, usefulness of a process or device to society, research contribution and its impact, (measured by supporting letters from colleagues), results of scholarly publications and their citation analysis, degree of research funding, or other appropriate metrics, etc.

Requirements:

A completed nomination form that includes a brief statement (300-word limit) supporting your reasoning for this award nomination
One additional supporting statement (300-word limit) from an individual within the college.
Supplemental materials will not be accepted.

Past Awardees

College Support Award: Courtney Angstadt, Rita Griffith, Melinda Heckman, Brianne Lippert, Zoe Meyer, and Kevin Wall
Community and Service Award: Amy Stever
Dean's Circle of Excellence: Laura Adams
Dean's Honor Award: Shannon Bishop
Faculty Excellence in Research: Amulya Yadav
George J. McMurtry Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Megan Costello
George J. McMurtry Junior Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Fenglong Ma
Junior Faculty Excellence in Research: Yubo Kou
Rising Star Award: Courtney Angstadt and Kaitlin Ladlee
Susan B. Lucas Diversity and Equity Award: Aimee Brown-Shadduck

College Support Award: Jeannette Macaluso, Susan Agee, Elise Fiorante, Heidi Lewis, Meggan MacDonald, Kali McKeehan, Mary Morrow, Kristy Romaine, Laurie Shirey, Rebecca Thurman-Irons, and Melissa Williams
Community and Service Award: Tyler Estright and Jony Rommel
Dean's Circle of Excellence: Jordan Ford
Dean's Honor Award: Erica Fleming
Faculty Excellence in Research: Prasenjit Mitra
George J. McMurtry Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: James Wang
George J. McMurtry Junior Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Qingyun Wu
Junior Faculty Excellence in Research: Fenglong Ma
Rising Star Award: Logan Harvey and Nathan Mellace
Susan B. Lucas Diversity and Equity Award: Lauren DiPerna

College Support Award: Rita Griffith and Kathy Wiest, Chrissie Fitzgerald, Jenna Hart, and Carly Marshall
Community and Service Award: Grace Hakizimana and Frank Ritter
Dean's Circle of Excellence: Chris Milito
Dean's Honor Award: Madhavi Kari, Kristy Romaine, Peggy Stanton, and Andrea Tapia
Faculty Excellence in Research: Dinghao Wu
George J. McMurtry Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Bill Parquette
George J. McMurtry Junior Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Priya Kumar
Junior Faculty Excellence in Research: Hadi Hosseini
Rising Star Award: Elizabeth Stouffer
Susan B. Lucas Diversity and Equity Award: Kim Woodward

College Support Award: Jenna Sieber, Dean Croll, Brian Daigle, Fatima Ferguson, Amy Garrick, Chris Gamrat, Jon Hughes, Sharon Lazarow, Lisa Lenze, Kent Matsueda, and Trisha McKee
Community and Service Award: Jessica Hallman and Steve Babb
Dean's Honor Award: Laura Adams and Peng Liu
Faculty Excellence in Research: Frank Ritter
George J. McMurtry Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: David Hozza
George J. McMurtry Junior Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Daniel Susser
Junior Faculty Excellence in Research: Ting Wang
Rising Star Award: Jeannette Macaluso
Susan B. Lucas Diversity and Equity Award: Chris Gamrat

College Support Award: Laura Adams
Community and Service Award: Alison Laninger and Nick Giacobe
Dean's Circle of Excellence: Chris Gamrat
Dean's Honor Award: Susan Agee and Lee Giles
Faculty Excellence in Research: Dongwon Lee
George J. McMurtry Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Alison Murphy
George J. McMurtry Junior Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Sarah Rajtmajer
Junior Faculty Excellence in Research: Xinyu Xing
Rising Star Award: Hayley Wildeson
Susan B. Lucas Diversity and Equity Award: Allie Ellison

College Support Award: Stephanie Krout, Christian Alves, Audrey Boob, and Kevin Wall
Community and Service Award: Michelle Corby and Pam Long
Dean's Circle of Excellence: Susan Agee
Faculty Excellence in Research: James Wang
George J. McMurtry Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Jeff Rimland
George J. McMurtry Junior Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Ben Hanrahan
Junior Faculty Excellence in Research: Saeed Abdullah
Rising Star Award: Allie Ellison
Susan B. Lucas Diversity and Equity Award: Rita Griffith

College Support Award: Shannon Johnson
Dean's Circle of Excellence: Lisa Lenze
Faculty Excellence in Research: Mary Beth Rosson
George J. McMurtry Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Dave Fusco
Junior Faculty Excellence in Research: David Reitter
Rising Star Award: Betty Jo Houser

College Support Award: Priscilla Cetnar, Lisa Crownover, Cindy Bierly, Karen Brewster, Debbie Kozel, Evelyn Mayhew, and Kathy Wiest
Dean's Circle of Excellence: Amy Garbrick
Faculty Excellence in Research: Jack Carroll
George J. McMurtry Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Steve Haynes
George J. McMurtry Junior Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Jessie Li
Junior Faculty Excellence in Research: Jessie Li
Rising Star Award: Kevin Wall
Community and Service Award: Kent Matsueda and Peggy Stanton

College Support Award: Kent Matsueda, Pam Long, and Lee Erickson
Community and Service Award: Lynette Yarger
Dean's Circle of Excellence: Cindy Bierly
Faculty Excellence in Research: Vasant Honavar
George J. McMurtry Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Ed Glantz
George J. McMurtry Junior Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Dinghao Wu
Junior Faculty Excellence in Research: Eun Kyoun Choe
Rising Star Award: Christian Alves
Susan B. Lucas Diversity and Equity Award: Karen Brewster

College Support Award: Kelly Bryan, Carey Stover, Cindy Keeler, and Tracy Ray
Community and Service Award: Wendy Fay
Dean's Circle of Excellence: Karen Brewster
Faculty Excellence in Research: Peng Liu
George J. McMurtry Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Jan Sturdevant
George J. McMurtry Junior Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Peggy Fisher
Junior Faculty Excellence in Research: Anna Squicciarini
Rising Star Award: Deb Pallo
Susan B. Lucas Diversity and Equity Award: Olivia Lewis

Faculty Excellence in Research: Lee Giles
George J. McMurtry Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning: John Hill
Junior Faculty Excellence in Research: Dinghao Wu

George J. McMurtry Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Learning

Lynette Yarger (2013)
Jake Graham (2012)
Will McGill (2011)
Don Shemanski (2010)
Gerry Santoro (2009)
Rosalie Ocker (2008)

Faculty and Staff Awards