Awards & Endowments

• Eligibility:

Full-time faculty and staff members with a minimum of three years experience at USM are eligible.

• Supporting Documentation:

Applicants should submit the following:

• 1. a vita; a (include years of service at USM; publications, grants, and other major efforts related to promoting diversity; professional memberships and organizations; and community and civic involvement)
• 2. a single-spaced narrative of your contributions to the positive advancement of diversity on campus at Southern Miss and within the University community
• 3. two letters of support from faculty, administrators or staff (each letter of support must address how the candidate has demonstrated positive advancement of diversity and has been involved in community and civic activities)
• Supporting Documents are due Monday, October 15, 2012
• Fill out the application here.

• Eligibility:

Full-time faculty members with a minimum of three years experience at USM are eligible. Individuals who receive this award are not eligible for five years, and individuals who have received two awards are ineligible. Nominations will be accepted from any faculty member staff member, or administrator. The names of nominees should be sent to Susie Plymale, Office of the Provost (susie.plymale@usm.edu; phone: 266-6579). Self-nominations will not be accepted.

• Supporting Documentation:

Nominees submit the following:

1. a vita

2. a two-page (single-spaced) narrative describing your most significant university service contributions

3. Three letters of support from faculty members or administrators must be submitted with the nominee's name and award in the subject heading.

• Nominations are due October 31, 2012.
• Supporting documentation is due electronically Monday, November 12, 2012.
• Only complete submissions will be considered by the Faculty Senate Awards Committee. Submissions that do not adhere to above guidelines will not be considered. The committee's recommendation will be submitted to the Provost to finalize the process.
• Fill out the application here.

• Eligibility:

Full-time faculty members with a minimum of three years experience at USM are eligible. Individuals who receive this award are not eligible for five years, and individuals who have received two awards are ineligible. Nominations will be accepted from any faculty member or student. The names of nominees should be sent to Susie Plymale, Office of the Provost (susie.plymale@usm.edu; phone: 266-6579). Self-nominations will not be accepted.

• Supporting Documentation:

Nominees submit the following:

1.a vita

2. a two-page (single-spaced) narrative of your teaching philosophy

3. student evaluations from the previous two years

4. syllabi from at least four courses (preferably from courses during the previous three years)

5. two letters of support from students

6. two letters of support from faculty or administrators

7. and optional supporting documents (not required) such as, awards won by students, pretest and post test results, results of students' success on national exams, success of students obtaining employment or graduate school admission, etc. Graphs and tables to organize and simplify information are encouraged. (Limit these optional documents to four pages and remember not to use students' names or EMPLID).

• Nominations are due October 31, 2012.
• Supporting documentation is due electronically Monday, November 12, 2012.
• Only complete submissions will be considered by the Faculty Senate Awards Committee. Submissions that do not adhere to above guidelines will not be considered. The committee's recommendation will be submitted to the Provost to finalize the process.
• Fill out the application here.

• Eligibility:

Full-time faculty members who hold the rank of Full Professor and have a minimum of ten years experience at The University of Southern Mississippi are eligible. Individuals who have received the award twice are ineligible for future consideration.

• Supporting Documentation:

Faculty must submit by November 19, 2012, the following documents: a maximum five-page vita; a maximum of three pages summarizing accomplishments in teaching, research and service; and three letters of support from faculty, students, administrators, or staff. The University Grand Marshal - Distinguished Professor Committee members will review the applications and submit their recommendations to the Provost by January 30, 2012.

• Application Deadline: November 19, 2012
• Fill out the application here.

• Purpose: the Aubrey Keith and Ella Ginn Lucas Endowment seeks to support and reward faculty excellence in the following areas:
1. 1) Instruction:

   books, audiovisual materials, or other resources.

2. 2) Research:

   travel, laboratory expenses, documents, wages, or other resources.

• Proposal: Applicants should submit their proposals, consisting of:
1. 1) Cover Page

   Which should include:

- Name of Applicant

- Academic Rank of Applicant

- College and School or Department of Applicant

- Title of Proposal

- Type of Proposal (either instruction or research)

- Total Funds Requested (up to $5,000)

- Starting and Ending Dates of Project

2. 2) Project description

   No longer than two pages, single-spaced, formatted using a 12-point font with one-inch margins on all sides. The project description should include:

- Background

- Purpose

- Methodology

- Anticipated impact to yourself and the university

- Progress and Time-Line

- Budget (with a justification for each expense)

3. 3) Vita

   No longer than two pages

4. 4) Letters of support

   Letter of support from the department chair/director and a letter of support from the college dean

• Criteria for Selection
1. 1) Clarity and Comprehensiveness of the Proposal
2. 2) Anticipated Impact
3. 3) Reasonableness of the Budget
4. 4) Letters of Support
• Proposals are due Monday, November 5, 2012
• Fill out the application here.

• Limited Submission:

NEH allows each university two (2) nominations. To facilitate nominee selection, a committee appointed by the USM Provost will review applications and make recommendations to the Provost.

• To Be Considered:

Prepare and submit an application package to Southern Miss Sponsored Programs Administration (SPA) by 5.pm. Thursday, September 15. Detailed application elements and instructions are posted on SPA's Internal Competitions page ( http://usm.edu/spa/policies/internal_competitions.htm ).

• Deadlines:

- Application materials are due at SPA by 5.pm. Thursday, September 15

- Nominees will be notified by Thursday, September 22

- Nominee applications are due at NEH by Thursday, September 29

• Fill out the application here.

Information about Sabbatical Leave

Sabbatical leave is granted for the sole purpose of professional improvement and is not necessarily earned by the required duration of University employment. Sabbatical leave is intended to assist faculty to achieve in academic rank and to enhance their professional development and scholarly reputation. A plan incorporating goals for the sabbatical leave is required. Please review Chapter 6, Faculty Development Opportunities, in the Faculty Handbook for additional information about sabbatical leave.

When a faculty member is granted an academic leave of absence, it is the responsibility of the responsible department chair/director and dean to ensure that the faculty member's classes are assigned to existing faculty. Employment of additional instructors or faculty members for this purpose must be approved by the dean and the Provost.

If awarded sabbatical leave, the faculty member shall agree to complete the proposed plan during the term awarded. Faculty members awarded sabbatical leave shall agree to the following:

- to engage in professional development as specified in an approved application for leave;

- not to enter into a written or implied obligation of employment violating the contract for full service to the University;

- to return to full-time employment at the University for a period at least equal to the term of leave; and

- to submit to responsible deans at the midpoint of the leave an interim report describing progress toward sabbatical goals and a formal, final report to the dean and Provost within sixty days of the conclusion of leave.

Application Materials

When applying for sabbatical leave the faculty member should electronically submit the following materials to the department chair/director or at the option of the academic department, to the departmental personnel committee:

• 1. Cover page with the faculty's name, title, and the time period requested for leave
• 2. Description of the Project

The project description should not be longer than two pages, single-spaced, formatted using a 12-point font or larger with one-inch margins on all sides. The project description should include the following sections.

1. Objectives and Significance of the Project

2. Relation of the Project to Your Long-Term Scholarly Goals

3. Relation of the Project to Present State of Knowledge in the Field

4. General Plan and/or Methods and Procedures

- Where the proposed project is part of a longer project, what is the nature and expected date of completion of the entire project?

5. Plans for Publication or Dissemination of Results

• 3. Brief two-page vita highlighting most relevant accomplishments
• 4. Supporting documentation

Faculty may want to submit supporting documentation, such as, letters of support from agencies, universities, libraries, and other institutions with whom the faculty member will be working (optional) or other supporting materials appropriate to the discipline (optional). Limit the supporting documentations to 10 pages.

Submission Guideline Steps

Materials and documents for the sabbatical application process are submitted electronically according to the following steps:

• Step 1. The faculty member (below the level of department chair/director) applying for sabbatical leave will electronically submit the cover page, project description, vita, and supporting documentation to the department chair/director or at the option of the academic department, to the departmental personnel committee. Chairs applying for sabbatical leaves should refer to the Faculty Handbook section 6.2.6 about submitting sabbatical requests.

• Step 2. The chair/director (department personnel committee) will review the sabbatical application materials and will write a support or non-support letter to the dean. The chair/director electronically submits the application materials along with the letter of support or non-support to the dean for review. Please check with the dean for the college's due dates.

• Step 3. The responsible deans must evaluate the sabbatical requests, not only upon the merits, but must also consider the overall impact of the absences on the operations of the departments and colleges. Deans must either concur or dissent in writing with departmental recommendations and electronically transmit all favorable application materials and support letters to the Provost by October 22, 2012. Deans should submit sabbatical recommendations in priority order.

• Step 4. The Provost will consult with the Sabbatical Review Committee for evaluation and recommendations of the applications. The Provost then submits recommendations to the President.

• Step 5. After review, the President submits recommendations for academic leaves of absence to the Board of Trustees. Thereafter, the decisions of the Board are conveyed to the President, who informs the Provost and deans of the responsible colleges.

For additional information, contact Cynthia Easterling in the Office of the Provost at (601 266-6579 or cynthia.easterling@usm.edu

• Click here to download a PDF version

• Eligibility:

Awards are open to full-time, nine-month Corps of Instruction who are teaching at least six-hours of regularly scheduled courses during the current academic year in which application is made. Award recipients must remain at USM for at least one academic year following the summer term for which the award is received. Previous recipients must wait four years before receiving a second award.

• Deadlines

Submission deadline – October 15, 2012

Award announced – end of fall semester

Funds available – for summer term

• Guidelines for Proposal:

The proposal should not exceed four pages in length (single-spaced) and must include the following information:

- Purpose -
Describe briefly the goal of your project and its importance. Include sufficient background information to define the problem for a general university audience.

1. The clarity and comprehensiveness of the project description.

2. The recommendation and comments from the chair/director and dean.

3. The degree to which the project meets a significant instructional need.

4. The potential impact of the project on education at Southern Miss in terms of its general usefulness to the academic community.

5. The reasonability of the timeline and the request for course release in relation to the proposed project.

6. The project workload warrents the number of release time requested.

- Method -
Describe the steps you will take to implement the project. This may include assistance from Alternative Learning Coordinators, iTech, Office of Distance Education and Support, and the Learning Enhancement Center.

- Anticipated impact -
Indicate the potential impact of the project on instruction. Identify the groups affected by the project and describe in what ways these groups will benefit from the development and delivery of this project.

- Evaluation and Assessment -
Tell how you intend to measure the effectiveness of your project and how you will assess student-learning outcomes. These assessment methods may be part of the innovative design of the program.

- Progress and timeline -
Outline any work already undertaken and provide a timetable for the anticipated completion of the project. The timeline should include deadlines for approval of program delivery modifications through Academic and Graduate Councils and SACS is such approvals are necessary. Compensation can be requested for one, two, or three course equivalents (three, six, or nine credit hours). If requesting release time for a project equivalent to nine credit hours, grant recipients are not permitted to undertake additional university employment and/or grant during the grant period used as teaching summer classes.

- Grant Funding -
The terms of the Summer Grant for the Improvement of Instruction grants coincide with the University's summer semester faculty pay scale. The amounts awarded for the grants are based on the academic ranks of recipients and are equivalent to summer salaries for teaching 3 to 9 nine hours.

- Vita -
Include in the proposal a current vita (no longer than three pages).

- Additional funding (optional) -
If your project requires funding beyond the salary stipend, indicate the source and status of the additional funds.

- Other support (optional) -
If you require instructional technology support or other academic support, indicate whether such support is available.

- Criteria for Selection -

1. The clarity and comprehensiveness of the project description.

2. The recommendation and comments from the chair/director and dean.

3. The degree to which the project meets a significant instructional need.

4. The potential impact of the project on education at Southern Miss in terms of its general usefulness to the academic community.

5. The reasonability of the timeline and the request for course release in relation to the proposed project.

6. The project workload warrants the number of release time requested

- Final Report -
Individuals receiving this award should submit to the Provost a final report within 60 days from the end of the award year. The final report should describe accomplishments, indicating how the project goals were achieved. Refer to and address all submission criteria in developing this report.

• To Submit
  All materials should be submitted as directed on the Provost website. For additional information please contact Cynthia Easterling or Susie Plymale in the Office of the Provost at (601) 266-6579.
• Application Packets should contain the following items

1. Proposal

2. Letter from chair recommending the project and approving release time

3. Letter from the dean recommending the project and approving release time

4. Vita

5. Optional - Supporting material (limited to two pages)

• Fill out the application here.

• Timeline
  Applications for HEADWAE are due to the Provost by October 8, 2012.
  HEADWAE Review Committee selects Southern Mississippi faculty nominee by October 24, 2012.
  HEADWAE faculty nominee submits final materials and photo to the Office of the Provost by November 1, 2012 for submission to IHL.

  To apply you will need the following information.

  • Cover Letter (indicating the desire to apply and the faculty member’s name, title, department, college, years of service at Southern Mississippi and years of service in higher education)
  • Current Vita
  • Two-page summary of accomplishments. (organized in the areas of teaching, research/creative activities and service)
  • Additional supporting documents will not be reviewed unless specifically requested by the University HEADWAE Review Committee

  Applications for HEADWAE are due to the Provost by October 8, 2012. 

• Fill out the application here.

• Eligibility:

All applicants must be junior faculty during the academic year in which they apply.

“Junior” faculty is defined as any untenured tenure-track assistant professor in good standing.

To be eligible, an individual must be within 10 years of receiving the terminal degree with no more than six years of service as a faculty member (at all institutions combined). Time as a visiting faculty member is not included.

An individual may apply for the professorship in multiple cycles but may not receive the award more than once.

• Submission Guidelines

Applicants should submit the following:

• 1. a narrative of no more than three double-spaced pages that addresses. professional accomplishments as a junior faculty member.

• In addition to the narrative, applications must include the following:

• 2. Recommendation letters (three total - one must be from chair or director. Of the two remaining letters, either or both may be from individuals outside The University of Southern Mississippi). Letters should not only discuss prior accomplishments and current activity but should also address the individual’s potential for contributions to the University, the discipline or profession, and/or the community.
• 3. Brief two-page vita highlighting most relevant accomplishments. Up to two additional pages (or equivalent) of supplemental materials--not narrative--may be submitted if necessary to support the application. Examples of supplemental material include bibliographies, images, music samples, and links to products.
• Evaluation of Proposals

Applicants will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

• 1. Clarity of the narrative (for general audience)
• 2. Academic accomplishments
• 3. Professional promise, supported by recommendation letters

• Individuals not meeting the eligibility requirements or applications not addressing all submission criteria, not submitted by the deadline, or in the required format will not be considered for this professorship.

• Process and Timeline

Applications for the professorship will be due March 23, 2012. One junior faculty professorship will be available beginning fall 2012. The recipient will be announced in summer 2012 and will be recognized at the fall convocation.

• Distribution of the Award

Funds may be used as desired by the recipient and will be distributed to the recipient as a one-time award through University Payroll. Taxes will be withheld from the final award amount.

• Application materials are due by 5:00 pm on Friday, March 23, 2012 and must be submitted together at one time. The review committee may not consider applications that have missing material or documents
• Fill out the application here.