This Champion of Undergraduate Research and Rising Star Awards are designed to honor outstanding faculty mentors who support undergraduate research across the UCF campus and within their own teaching and research. Faculty must apply directly to be considered for this award, but nominations can be sent to alison.hudson@ucf.edu or our@ucf.edu, and she will help the nominees access the form.

The Champion of Undergraduate Research Award recognizes UCF faculty who have made significant, lasting contributions to promote and facilitate undergraduate research at UCF and who have been employed by UCF full-time for more than seven years. First given in 2019, this award is designed to honor outstanding faculty mentors who have an outstanding record of supporting undergraduate research and expanding access to research opportunities across UCF, as well as within their own teaching and research.

The awardees will be selected by a faculty committee, based upon the following criteria:

1. Depth of consistent, documented , sustained involvement in mentoring undergraduate researchers
   • This will consider not just the number of students mentored relative to the average in the discipline, but also faculty’s sustained guidance of them.
   • Documented research refers to recorded, provable mentorship activities (such as acting as the mentor for a Directed Independent Research (4912) course, supervising an Honors Undergraduate Thesis, participating as a mentor in the LEARN, McNair, RAMP, EXCEL, or other programs, etc.), as opposed to overseeing student volunteers whose activities were not recorded.
2. Contribution to expanding access to undergraduate research at the departmental, college, or university level, across UCF (as well as involvement as a mentor to student researchers).
   • The committee will particularly consider how the champions expanded access to research for students from underrepresented groups or students who would not otherwise have become involved in research.
   • The committee will particularly consider how champions have worked with a range of research programs and offices across UCF.
3. Successful results of their mentorship
   • The committee will consider evidence of students’ achievements such as presentations, publications, awards, and placements in graduate programs or professional schools.

To be awarded for the first time in 2023, the Champion of Undergraduate Research: Rising Star Award recognizes faculty who have worked at the University of Central Florida full time for fewer than 7 years (not counting periods of leave) and who already have an extensive track record of successfully mentoring undergraduate researchers. In particular, it celebrates mentors who guide undergraduates from underrepresented backgrounds or who would not otherwise become involved in research,

Applicants must be professors or lecturers who meet the OUR Policy on Faculty Mentors. We strongly encourage applications from faculty who have:

• Served as a faculty member at UCF for at least three years
• Been the primary mentor to five or more undergraduate researchers, working together with each student over the course of at least two semesters
  
• Had students who participated in opportunities such as (but not limited to) Honors Undergraduate Thesis, UCF Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship, McNair Scholars, L.E.A.R.N.,  etc.
• Mentored students who have disseminated their work at UCF and beyond (e.g., internal and external conferences, publications)
• Applicants must be professors or lecturers who meet the OUR Policy on Faculty Mentors.