The Richard H. Emmons Award for Excellence in College Astronomy Teaching

Past Emmons Award Winners

The Richard H. Emmons Award was inspired by a very generous gift from Jeanne and Allan Bishop, in honor of her father, Richard Emmons. In 2006, Dr. Jeanne Bishop, a well-known astronomy educator in her own right, wished to honor her father, an astronomer with a life-long dedication to astronomy education, by creating an annual award that recognizes and celebrates outstanding achievement in the teaching of college-level introductory astronomy for non-science majors.

Eligibility:

Current or past service as an instructor of introductory astronomy for non-science majors at a one or more accredited 2-year or 4-year institutions of higher education. Preference will be given to those who spend a significant fraction of their teaching time with non-science majors.

Selection Criteria:

1) A proven track record of excellence in generally accepted educational practices; innovation in methodology, instructional technology, or educational approach; and demonstrated respect for both students and peers.

2) Significant impact on the field of college astronomy teaching for non-science majors beyond the nominee’s institution(s). (Contributions that might meet this criterion include books or papers for or about Astro 101 instruction, workshops or presentations for other instructors, preparation of on-line or audio visual aids, etc.).

3) (Optional) Commitment to astronomy education beyond the “Astro 101” classroom but related to it, such as development of introductory laboratory activities, innovative techniques for planetarium instructional use, development or innovative use of student observatories, etc.

The Award

The Richard H. Emmons Award for Excellence in College Astronomy Teaching consists of a plaque and a cash award of $500 to be presented at the Annual Meeting Awards Banquet.

Procedure for Nominations and Selection of Winners

• Nominations must be made on the Emmons Award form. (Resumes, nomination letters, and other materials may be attached to this form, but the form must be submitted in each case.)
• Nominations may be submitted electronically. An electronic version of the Emmons Award form is acceptable, but nomination and support letters should be submitted as PDF images showing institutional letterhead where appropriate.
• Nominees must reside in North America.
• Neither self-nominations nor nomination by a family member will be accepted.
• At least 3 letters of support by those familiar with and able to evaluate the nominee's professional work should be included in the nomination package. Support letters from former students are especially welcome.
• Please attach a copy of the nominee’s professional VITA.
• Other supporting material, such as abstracts or title pages from relevant publications, print-outs of top pages of websites, schedules of workshops the nominee has offered, etc. may also be included.
• Nominations will remain active for 3 years and additional supporting material may be submitted at any time. After 3 years, a new nomination must be made for the nominee to continue to be considered.
• The deadline for nominations is 15 December 2007.
• Nominations are evaluated by the Awards Committee appointed by the ASP Board of Directors.

Richard Emmons Award nomination form (html version)

Contact awards {at} astrosociety.org if you have questions or need more information.

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