Guidelines for Nominations for the UGFA Academic Librarianship Award

1. General Purpose

   The award is intended to provide tangible recognition for excellent contribution toward academic librarianship broadly defined. Individuals may be nominated for an UGFA award on the basis of excellent performance in providing to all members of the academic community the fullest possible access to library materials, facilities, and information. The areas for consideration of outstanding performance are:

   1. The acquisition, cataloguing and processing of library materials to organize and structure access to the collection.
   2. Bibliographic instruction and library orientation classes in support of academic programs.
   3. Development and evaluation of collections to enhance the value for teaching and research.
   4. Development of innovative library procedures and systems to improve access to internal and external library resources and services.
   5. Effective, efficient, and innovative administration and management to achieve the service and workplace objectives of the Library’s mission statement.
   6. Management of collection resources to insure access to library resources.
   7. Professional service to the university, to librarianship, or the community which brings recognition to the value and achievements of academic librarianship.
   8. Provision of service and information for faculty, students, and the community at large to facilitate learning and the development of new knowledge.
   9. Research and publication in library science or other academic disciplines.

2. Dates For 2011

   Closing date for nominations: March 25, 2011

   Closing date for supporting materials: April 1, 2011

   Presentation: the citation is normally presented at the annual wine & cheese reception held in the fall.

3. Who may nominate

   Nominations may be made by anyone in the University community. Students, faculty, librarians, professional staff, support staff and administrative personnel are all eligible and encouraged to submit nominations.

   No standard nomination form is required, but nominations must clearly indicate:

   1. the name of the nominee.
   2. documentation to support the nomination (see below)
   3. the name and phone number of the nominator.

4. Eligibility

   Any member of UGFA is eligible to be nominated and to receive the Award.

5. Criteria and Documentation

   Evidence of excellent performance in one or more of the categories indicated in “General Purpose” may be derived from a number of different sources, for example:

   1. letters;
   2. bibliographies of publications;
   3. other awards;
   4. positions held on committees and organizations (with dates).

   There are no fixed criteria or decision rules for the selection of UGFA award winners; members of the selection committee may weight different areas and different sources of evidence as they see fit. Preference is normally given to nominees who:

   1. have been successful in several areas;
   2. have the support of several constituencies--e.g., students, peers, administrators, rather than only a single constituency;
   3. are judged to be “truly excellent” rather than merely “very good”;
   4. have made a positive contribution to the library’s academic mission and fostered users’ ability to succeed in their academic endeavors.

   The nominator’s brief summarizing the various categories of support documentation is the major document which the committee members will study most carefully and upon which they will largely base their decision. It should represent the core of the case and offer a picture of where and with what priority the support documents fit in.

6. Award Ceremony

   The recipient of an UGFA Academic Librarianship Award is a guest of the UGFA at a wine & cheese award ceremony in the fall where the award is presented with a citation to commemorate the achievement.

   Send nominations to Teaching & Academic Librarianship Awards Committee, Faculty Association Office, 5 University Ave. E..

   The Academic Librarianship Award will be decided by the UGFA Teaching & Librarianship Awards Committee which is composed of the Vice-President of the Association, who shall act as Chair of the Committee, and at least three, but not more than four, appointees, at least one of whom will be a librarian. The number appointed will be governed by the desire to get representation from a variety of work environments.