Purpose

The University of Missouri has been named as a beneficiary under a charitable trust established by William T. Kemper. The funds contributed by this trust are used to recognize the importance of teaching excellence to the success of the university by honoring MU faculty who have demonstrated outstanding teaching abilities.

Award

Each year five outstanding MU teachers will be recognized with a $15,000 award.

Eligibility

Full-time faculty who have completed a minimum of three years (as of Sept. 1, 2025) as a tenured, tenure track or non-tenure track position at MU may be nominated. The award is intended to honor and reward MU faculty who have demonstrated outstanding teaching ability. For this award, teaching is considered in its broadest sense. Teaching is defined to include advising and covers work with students at any level (undergraduate, graduate and professional) and in a wide variety of settings in which instructional activity occurs at a comprehensive university (in the classroom, in the laboratory and on the stage; through advising and mentoring students and guiding research; and through outreach activities).

Review Period

The review committee will limit the evaluation of the nominee’s teaching records to the preceding five years.

• Year one: Fall 2020, Spring 2021 and Summer 2021
• Year five: Fall 2024, Spring 2025 and Summer 2025 (You may include Fall 2025 in Year five if information is available.)

Nominations & Submissions

Annual Deadline:  January 8 (due the following business day when falls on a weekend or holiday)

Faculty colleagues, departments, schools/colleges or recognized campus organizations may nominate individuals. Nominations and supporting materials must be submitted by the Divisional Dean, who may establish an earlier deadline.

Please submit an electronic version as a single PDF attachment via email to UMCProvostAwards@missouri.edu. Name the file as follows: YearKemper_LastFirst (e.g., 2026Kemper_TigerTruman). No hard copies required. Department chairs should retain a copy of nomination materials for possible future use, as unsuccessful nominations may be updated and resubmitted in successive years.

Submissions should follow the format specified below and should include the materials in the order in which they appear below.

Format: 12 pt font, 1” margins, single space within paragraphs

Nomination materials should include:

1. Submission Requirements Form
2. Nomination/Cover Letter. Letter should be limited to two pages.
3. Supporting letters (limited to five) from nominee’s chair and/or dean, colleagues, staff members, and students (current or former).
4. Nominee’s personal philosophy of teaching statement, explicitly outlining instructional goals, instructional strategies, and methods of bringing current research into the instructional process. Statement should be limited to three pages.
5. List of courses taught and the number of students in each, as well as other instructional and advising activities during the preceding five years.
6. Data from two or more instruments that evaluate instructional activity. For example, student evaluations of teaching, peer observations of teaching, results of assessment of student learning, or other relevant methods of evaluation. Do not include copies of individual student or course forms/sheets. If including student evaluations of teaching, please use the  Student Feedback on Teaching Chart (for all courses taught before Fall 2023). Also, please use this Student Feedback on Teaching Chart (for all courses taught beginning Fall 2023). Data for courses taught beginning Fall 2023 should come directly from the Construct Mean table on the Feedback on Instruction and Course form.
7. Nominee’s curriculum vitae, with a focus on the last five years.

Please contact us at UMCProvostAwards@missouri.edu with any questions.

Recipients of the William T. Kemper Fellowship for Teaching Excellence