Portland State’s Undergraduate Mentoring Excellence Award honors a PSU faculty member who has provided outstanding mentorship to undergraduate students engaged in research at Portland State University. The person selected for this honor will receive an award and a $1,500 taxable honorarium.
Eligibility Criteria
This award is intended for a PSU faculty member who has demonstrated a strong commitment to undergraduate research education and mentoring at PSU, as evidenced through dedicated service and an extraordinary commitment to creating an environment supportive of undergraduate research, student success and mentorship opportunities.
Selection Criteria
Extraordinary Commitment and Effectiveness as a Mentor to Undergraduate Students
Nominees will have demonstrated significant impact to, involvement of and support for undergraduate students to ensure content mastery and skills growth within their discipline, empowering students to set and attain personal and professional goals.
Demonstrated Record of Effectively Supporting Undergraduate Students' Success
Strong nominees will have an excellect record of helping mentees garner scholarships, grants, awards, or other achievements that directly support students' advancement in their research work and scholarship.
Intellectual Leadership
Strong nominees will have a record of excellence in their own research and/or creative work, innovative teaching/pedagogy, and presentation and publication in their discipline while involving their undergraduate mentees in meaningful ways that foster academic growth and intellectual development.
Professional Responsibility and Integrity
Strong nominees for this award should consistently model professionalism and integrity in every aspect of their work as a teacher, researcher, and author, clearly articulating high expectations and holding undergraduate students to the same high standards, including successful and timely completion of projects and courses.
Support, Sensitivity and Advocacy for Undergraduate Mentees
Strong nominees show immense respect for their undergraduate students and those students’ personal and professional goals. They share their knowledge fo their discipline, connect mentees to appropriate intellectual and professional networks; advocate for students individually and/or collectively; and help them solve problems, resolve conflicts, and overcome barriers to academic success.
Demonstrated Commitment to Advancing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Nominees should lead, enhance, or expand initiatives and/or mentorship opportunities, particularly for individuals from groups historically marginalized or underrepresented in their field.
Length and Impact of Service to PSU
Strong nominees will have provided consistent and impactful service to PSU, enhancing the quality of mentorship at Portland State and contributing to the institution’s reputation for excellence.
Who May Submit Nominations
Nominations should be submitted by faculty, chairs, and/or deans via the 2026 Research Awards Nomination Form. Only one nomination may be submitted by a department for this award category.
Required Nomination Materials
Complete nomination packets will include the following materials (pdf format preferred):
Nominator’s Letter (3 pages maximum)
The primary nominator’s letter should articulate how the nominee meets the selection criteria described in this announcement. Nominators may recognize the many forms that mentorship can take. RGS encourages nominations of women, faculty of color, and members of other groups historically underrepresented in their disciplines.
Abbreviated Current Professional Curriculum Vitae (5 pages maximum)
Additional Letters of Support
The primary nominator may include additional letters of support from the nominee's colleagues, supervisors, and/or students, illustrating the positive impact of their experience working with or learning from the nominee, as well as any guidance or support they received from the nominee that contributed to their success.
Selection Process and Deadlines
Nominations should be initiated via the 2026 Research Awards Nomination Form by October 27, 2025 and must be completed by November 17, 2025.
Deans will approve completed nominations before they are submitted for review by an interdisciplinary selection committee.
Nominations will be evaluated by an interdisciplinary selection committee composed of past award recipients, associate deans, and other faculty. The awards selection committee will review all nominations completed and submitted by Monday, November 17, 2025 and approved by the nominees' deans.
No more than one awardee will ordinarily be named, and the review committee may forgo naming an awardee in any given year.
The nominee selected for this honor will be notified in January 2026, along with those who contributed to their nomination. The nomination packets of nominees not selected the previous year will automatically be included for consideration the following year, with letters of support and other nomination materials carried forward by the RGS Awards Manager. Current CVs and/or updated primary letters of nomination may be submitted to update these nomination packets. Nominees not selected in two consecutive years must remain out of review for one selection cycle (one year) before regaining eligibility.
Recognition
The individual selected for this honor will receive an award and public recognition at PSU’s Research Awards Ceremony and Reception. The winner will also receive a $1,500 taxable honorarium and an invitation to participate in the selection process to choose next year’s recipient of the Undergraduate Mentoring Excellence Award.
For answers to questions about this award or the nomination process, please contact RGS Research Awards Manager Amy Crelly: acrelly@pdx.edu, 503-725-9944 or research@pdx.edu.