STP Mentorship of Teachers Award

The Society for the Teaching of Psychology (STP; Division 2 of the American Psychological Association) invites nominations for the Mentorship of Teachers Award. Consistent with our Mission Statement and the Statement on Addressing Systemic Racism and Inequity in STP, we encourage applications from colleagues who are from underrepresented groups and have diverse backgrounds and experiences.

The purpose of this award is to recognize various forms of mentoring of teachers, including sharing knowledge and expertise, providing support and encouragement, offering feedback on performance, helping to identify opportunities and resources, and serving as a professional role model. The mentorship award, which honors those who mentor teachers, is distinct from the Excellence in Teaching Awards, some of which recognize mentoring of student professional development. The award is not limited to mentoring teachers of psychology, but may include mentoring of teachers in other disciplines. The award is for STP members, and STP encourages applications from colleagues who are from underrepresented groups and have diverse backgrounds and experiences. The recipient will receive $1,500, a plaque, and up to $1,500 to attend the Annual Conference on Teaching during the award year.

Call for Applications

2021 Award Recipient

Seungyeon Lee, Chair of award committee is happy to announce that the recipient of STP’s 2021 Mentorship of Teachers Award is Dr. Melissa Beers, the program director for Introduction to Psychology and coordinator for introduction to social psychology at the Ohio State University. Her research interests focus on effective teaching practices, graduate student training for college teaching, and assessment of student learning. Her significant contributions including her work with the APA Introductory Psychology Initiative (IPI) and teacher training and development team, were highly impressive.

Past Recipients

2021: Melissa Beers, The Ohio State University
2020:  Judith Bryant, University of South Florida

Criteria

Awardee plays an exceptional role in using psychological expertise to mentor teachers that may include the following:

• The person provides exceptional mentorship to aid colleagues at any level who are developing their skills in teaching
• The person supports faculty at any stage of their careers (e.g., graduate student teachers, early-career faculty, mid-career faculty, and/or senior faculty) with their professional development as teachers
• The person provides valuable advice to teachers at any stage on preparing for tenure and promotion, supporting and collaborating with faculty on Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL), and/or any professional training/workshops for teachers

In summary, the award recipient is both a leader and role model for a broad range of teachers across career stages and/or disciplines.

How to Apply

Both self-nominations and nomination from other members are accepted. The deadline for applications is February 15 of the award year.   Priority will be given to individuals who have not received the award in the past. STP reserves the right not to make an award if the STP Mentorship of Teachers Award Committee believes no applicant is qualified in a particular year. 

A complete application consists of the following:

• A two-page cover letter highlighting the applicant’s contributions to various forms of mentorship
• A full CV
• Three letters of support, including at least one from a teacher who has benefited from the applicant’s mentorship
• A letter of support from the applicant’s supervisor (e.g., department chair, dean, program director, or provost)

All nomination materials must elaborate on perspectives and values added through their mentorship, and letters of support need to complement the applicant’s contribution. 

For further instructions on how to apply, click here (requires login).

If you have questions, please email the Chair of the Mentorship Award Committee

Mentorship Award Committee