Eligibility

To be eligible for this award, an individual must:

1. Be a college or university teacher assigned at least half-time during the academic year to teaching of a mathematical science in a public or private college or university (from two-year college teaching through teaching at the Ph.D. level) in the United States or Canada. Those on approved leave (sabbatical or other) during the academic year in which they are nominated qualify if they fulfilled the requirements in the previous year.

2. Have at least five years teaching experience in a mathematical science

3. Be a member of the Mathematical Association of America

The nominees should

1. Be widely recognized as extraordinarily successful in their teaching

2. Have teaching effectiveness that can be documented

3. Have had influence in their teaching beyond their own institutions

4. Foster curiosity and generate excitement about mathematics in their students

"Teaching" is to be interpreted in its broadest sense, not necessarily limited to classroom teaching. It may include activities such as preparing students for mathematical competitions at the college level, for example, the Putnam Competition or the Mathematical Contest in Modeling, or attracting students to become majors in a mathematical science or to become Ph.D. candidates.

"Influence beyond their own institution'' can take many forms, including demonstrated lasting impact on alumni, influence on the profession through curricular revisions in college mathematics teaching with national impact, influential innovative books on the teaching of college mathematics, etc.

A previous nominee for this award who did not become a Section awardee can be nominated again. Meritorious nominations for the Distinguished Teaching Award which do not result in an award will be continued as active nominations for the next year's Distinguished Teaching Award and, if again not successful, will be continued for a third year as well.

instructions for nominators

Nominations for the 2025 Distinguished Teaching Award will be accepted through January 15, 2025. The Teaching Award Selection Committee's selection for the 2025 award, if any, will be announced at the Section's Spring 2025 Meeting. The awardee will also be the official Section candidate for the pool of Section awardees from which the national recipients of the Deborah and Franklin Tepper Haimo Awards will be selected (except that one of the national winners may be selected from another source).

Anyone is entitled to make a nomination, but nominations from chairs in departments of mathematical sciences are especially solicited. Although it is not mandatory, involvement of a nominee in preparing the nomination packet is permitted and encouraged. However, self-nomination is not permitted.

Nominators should submit a narrative describing the nominee's extraordinary success in teaching, including information on the nominee's background, experience, teaching style, special contributions, other teaching awards, and any additional evidence of the nominee's unusual achievement in teaching. Further types of evidence may include summaries of peer or student evaluations, comments on teaching, possible increases in numbers of undergraduate or graduate degrees given in mathematics (with clear evidence of the nominee's substantial responsibility for them), possible student successes in mathematics competitions (with clear evidence of the nominee's substantial responsibility for them), etc.

As a guide for writing a nomination, but not a required format, nominators may review the MAA's Nomination Form for its national-level award. A winning application, when forwarded to the MAA, may be revised or expanded to conform to the national standard format.

Please send each nomination packet to the Chair of the Distinguished Teaching Award Selection Committee so as to be received by January 15, 2025. You can also CC the other members of this committee if you so choose.

We look forward to your participation in this exciting MAA venture of taking substantive action to honor extraordinarily successful teaching. We want to see such teaching recognized at all post-secondary school levels. We depend on you to help us identify those who merit such recognition.