Award Winners

Outstanding Team Research

Outstanding Team Research Award - Statement of Purpose

The Outstanding Researcher Awards were first proposed by the University Research Council in 1984 to recognize individuals actively involved in research.  The Outstanding Team Research award, first proposed in 2003, recognizes exemplary collaborative research conducted by multiple investigators from interdisciplinary backgrounds.

Team nominees and individuals involved in selecting award recipients will adhere to the definition of research as provided by the University Research Council and appearing in the attached Criteria for the Evaluation of Scholarship and Creative Productivity. 

1. A nominated research team must be composed of two or more investigators.
2. At least one member of a nominated research team must be employed by Illinois State University as a tenure-track or non-tenure-track faculty member or an administrative/professional staff member.  This person must have been at Illinois State University for a minimum of three academic years prior to nomination.
3. One or more members of a nominated research team may be associated with an entity external to Illinois State University, including non-academic entities such as corporations.
4. Members of a nominated research team must be associated with at least two different units (e.g., departments, colleges, divisions, or offices).
5. Research teams with members currently serving on the University Research Council are ineligible.  Previous recipients of the award are ineligible. 

1. Award information will be disseminated to the campus research community via the University Research Council and College Research Committees.  Application materials are to be submitted directly to the Associate Vice President for Research, who will then pass them along to the University Research Council for review.
2. Nominated research teams must seek written letters of support for their applications from at least three sources (e.g., department chairperson, college dean, unit leader, or division head).  At least one of these written letters must be provided by a source external to Illinois State University.
3. The letters of support should address the contribution of the research team members to their fields of study, including the extent to which the nominated team is recognized nationally or internationally for their collaborative, interdisciplinary research.
4. The final evaluation of applications will be made by the University Research Council.  During deliberation, the Council may request supporting materials from nominated teams.
5. Recommendations regarding team award recipients will be forwarded to the Provost by the University Research Council.

C. A complete application should include:

1. Cover sheet.
2. A statement from the team describing its current collaborative, interdisciplinary research.  The statement should be written at a level appropriate for researchers outside the team’s disciplines.  In addition to a description of current activities, the statement should address the contribution of team’s research to each member’s field of study and practice.   (2 to 2 1/2 pages single spaced)
3. A full career vita for each team member.  Research accomplishments should be categorized and listed, beginning with the most recent, using the Evaluation Guidelines and Criteria of Scholarly and Creative Productivity found in these application materials.  Complete citations must be given for all published works.   
4. At least three written letters of support for the application, including one provided by an source that is external to Illinois State University, which addresses the:
   (a) national and, perhaps, international scope of the team’s research; (b) quality of scholarly work; and (c) contribution of the research to the team members’ professions/ disciplines.  (See Item D below.)
5. A written description of ways award monies will be used to further advance the collaborative, interdisciplinary work for which the award is being given.  Award monies cannot be used for salaries.        

D. Criteria for Evaluation

1. A nominated team’s record of collaborative, interdisciplinary research and publication while working together will be given greatest weight in the Council's deliberations, although the full career vitas for each team member will be reviewed.
2. Team nominees will be evaluated for (a) research that is recognized nationally and, perhaps, internationally, (b) quality of scholarly work, and (c) contribution to professions/disciplines.
3. Written letters of support for a team’s nomination should address these criteria:
   a. Importance of the team’s research nationally and internationally.
   b. Quality/uniqueness of scholarly work 
   c. How research makes unusual contribution to professional disciplines.
   NOTE:  Please be aware that reviewers of the Outstanding Team Research Award nominations are colleagues with expertise in diverse scholarly fields.  It is important to address a team’s research achievements with information clarifying how the work qualifies as outstanding in the particular disciplines represented.  (For example, scholarly activity in fine arts may be judged in quite different terms from scholarship in physics.)
4. The written description of ways award monies will be used to further advance the collaborative, interdisciplinary work for which the award is being given is clear and logical.

E. Distribution of Award

1. The award of $3,000 is to be used for any expenditure allowable within University budgetary guidelines with the exception of faculty salary.  The award is made to the team, not its individual members.  Team members will jointly decide how award monies will be used to further advance the collaborative, interdisciplinary work for which the award is being given.
2. The awards are for the new fiscal year beginning July 1.
3. The recipient must inform the Provost's office of how the funds are to be encumbered by February 1 of the academic year in which the award was announced.