Outstanding Community Service Awards Policy

Purpose: The purpose of this award is to recognize the involvement of faculty members in outstanding service to the community, and in order to promote continuation of such involvement with the Outstanding Community Service Award.

Eligibility: The award is open to all nursing faculty who teach at Avila University, Research College of Nursing/Rockhurst University or William Jewell College. Faculty members will be eligible for the award once every two years. These awards will be given to faculty member’s who have made a positive difference in activities that demonstrate service to the community and includes a $1,000 honorarium. The Nursing Program Administrator, Nursing Dean and/or the appropriate committee should nominate and recommend the recipient of the award. The Nursing Program Administrator, Nursing Dean and/or appropriate committee invites all teaching faculty to submit nominations for the annual Outstanding Community Service Award. Faculty members may also self-nominate.

Outstanding Community Service Award: The focus of the Outstanding Community Service Award is on the consistent performance of activities that demonstrate service to the community. Such service serves as a model for students and nursing faculty and “encourages faculty and students to provide leadership and service that fosters community growth.”

Criteria: In order to aid the nominator the following criteria for outstanding community service are suggested. Faculty members can be nominated on any one or more of these criteria, or on criteria developed and articulated by the nominator. Please consider for nomination any individual faculty member who:

• Through activities has inspired teachers and students to more actively perform community service.
• Has developed or originated new service projects, including interdisciplinary projects that identify and help alleviate community health problems.
• Has devised or demonstrated a new, original, or pioneering community service model that has been emulated or proved successful over time.
• Has shown leadership in demonstrating professional nursing’s cultural competence and commitment to community service.
• Has demonstrated effective use of political and networking skills to promote implementation of effective community health policy.
• Has demonstrated in a scholarly manner the importance and effectiveness of professional nursing service to the community.

Supporting documentation: Supporting documentation should be submitted and may include:

1. Presentations and/or publications related to nursing’s community service.
2. State, regional, national, or international recognition for community
   service.
3. Grant awards in support of community service.
4. Successful applications of technology to community service and service
   learning.
5. Design and implementation of outcome or evaluation/assessment
   research about community service programs.
6. Successful implementation of programs or policies that have alleviated
   community health problems

(Note: Projects and presentation/publication should be completed in the last three years.)

Only one award will be given for any one project: subsequent nominations will be for substantially different projects.

Process for Nomination and determination of recipient: Submit the following information to the Nursing Program Administrator, Nursing Dean and/or appropriate committee by November 1:

1. Completed Outstanding Community Service Award Application form.
2. A short essay from nominee that describes how the nominee meets the criteria named above (no more than one typed page).
3. Appropriate supporting documentation
4. Curriculum Vita
5. Letter of support from a peer

The Nursing Program Administrator, Nursing Dean and/or appropriate committee will review all applications. The Nursing Program Administrator or Nursing Dean must forward their final recommendation to The Research Foundation and it must be received by January 1.