SEC Faculty Achievement Awards

Purpose

The SEC Faculty Achievement Awards honor those with outstanding records in both teaching and scholarship who serve as role models for junior faculty and students. To qualify for the award, an individual’s scholarly contribution or discoveries must be such that colleagues within the discipline have acknowledged the faculty member nationally or internationally.

Eligibility

To be eligible for an SEC Faculty Achievement Award, a faculty member shall:

  • Be a teacher/scholar at the SEC university
  • Have achieved the rank of full professor at the SEC university
  • Have a record of extraordinary teaching
  • Have an outstanding record of scholarship that is recognized nationally and/or internationally
  • Not be a past SEC Faculty Achievement Award winner

Nominations

Based upon the requirements for the SEC Faculty Achievement Award, nomination materials include:

  • Submission Requirements Form
  • Required nomination Information (name of nominee, title, campus address, email, phone, nominator’s name and signature)
  • A curriculum vitae limited to five pages
  • A list of scholarly publications
  • An impact statement from the faculty member. The statement should address the following areas, in the order indicated. The areas are intentionally broad to ensure all faculty, regardless of discipline, have a framework to articulate their merits for selection as the SEC Professor of the Year. The impact statement shall be no longer than three, single-spaced pages.
    • Area(s) of expertise
    • Significance of work in the field
    • Teaching, particularly of undergraduates
    • Mentoring graduate students and other faculty
    • Service and engagement
    • Professional recognition, awards and honors
    • Other (e.g., community engagement, relevant personal accomplishments, etc.)
  • A letter (limited to three pages) of recommendation from the dean or unit supervisor
  • For publicity, a complete biographical sketch limited to 500 words
  • A current professional head shot and a current “environmental” photo (e.g., with students, in a classroom, in a lab setting, etc.); photos should be color, JPEG format, 300 dpi resolution and no less than 1500 x 2000 pixels
  • SEC Faculty Achievement Award Selection Procedures
  • SEC Faculty Achievement Award Selection Timeline

Submissions

Annual Deadline: November 1 (due the following business day when falls on a weekend or holiday)

Nominations and supporting materials must be submitted by the divisional dean. Submit nomination materials as Word documents via email to UMCProvostAwards@missouri.edu. Name the file as follows: YearSECFacAchv_LastFirst (e.g., 2026SECFacAchv_TigerTruman).

The documents will be made available to MU’s selection committee and MU finalist for the SEC Faculty Achievement Award will be identified in February. The provost’s office will oversee submissions of the final nomination for the SEC Faculty Achievement Award.

MU SEC Faculty Achievement Award Recipients:

  • Dr. David Geary, Curators Distinguished Professor, College of Arts & Science – 2025
  • Dr. Jay Sexton, Rich and Nancy Kinder Chair of Constitutional Democracy, Professor, College of Arts & Science – 2024
  • Dr. Wendy Reinke, Curators Distinguished Professor, College of Education and Human Development – 2023
  • Dr. Shuhua Zhou, Leonard H. Goldenson Professor of Radio and Television, Missouri School of Journalism – 2022
  • Dr. Kenneth Sher, Curators’ Distinguished Professor of Psychological Sciences, College of Arts & Science – 2021
  • Dr. Anthony Lupo, Atmospheric Sciences, College of Agriculture, Food & Natural Resources – 2020
  • Dr. Shelly Rodgers, Strategic Communication, School of Journalism – 2019
  • Dr. Inder K. Khurana, Geraldine Trulaske Chair in Accountancy, Professor, School of Accountancy, Trulaske College of Business – 2018
  • Dr. James Birchler,  Curators’ Professor in Biological Sciences, College of Arts & Science – 2017
  • Dr. Glen Cameron, Maxine Wilson Gregory Chair in Journalism Research, Professor, Missouri School of Journalism – 2016
  • Dr. Michael F. Smith, Curators’ Professor in Animal Science, College of Agriculture, Food & Natural Resources – 2015
  • Dr. Judy Wall, Curators’ Professor in Biochemistry, Joint Curators’ Professor of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology – 2014
  • Dr. Joshua Millspaugh, O’Connor Distinguished Professor of Wildlife Management, College of Agriculture, Food & Natural Resources – 2013

Additional Information

One Professor of the Year Award is given to the outstanding faculty member in the SEC, the monetary value of which is $20,000.

In addition, one SEC Faculty Achievement Award winner from each SEC university will receive a $5,000 honorarium.

SEC Professor of the Year:

  • Dr. William J. Murphy, James E. Womack University Professor, Regents Professor and Professor of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences, Texas A&M University, 2025
  • Dr. Jenna Jambeck, Regents Professor and Georgia Athletic Association Distinguished Professor of Environmental Engineering, University of Georgia, 2024
  • Dr. Pamela Soltis, Distinguished Professor and Curator at the Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, 2023
  • Marshall Shepherd, Georgia Athletic Association Distinguished Professor of Geography and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Georgia, 2022
  • Dr. Karen Wooley, Distinguished Professor of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, 2021
  • Marlon Blackwell, Chair & Distinguished Professor of Architecture and Design, University of Arkansas, 2020
  • Dr. Gabriela González, Professor of Physics & Astronomy, Louisiana State University 2019
  • Dr. Marcetta Darensbourg, Distinguished Professor of Chemistry, Texas A&M University 2018

MU SEC Professor of the Year Award Winner:

  • Dr. James Birchler, Curators’ Professor in Biological Sciences, College of Arts & Science 2017

All SEC  Faculty Achievement and SEC Professor of the Year Award Recipients