01.28.2026

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OVPFA

FACULTY AWARDS

The Office of the Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs is pleased to share the Spring 2026 January Newsletter, highlighting key milestones, opportunities, and resources that support faculty success across the University of Illinois Chicago. This issue celebrates excellence in teaching and recognizes recent faculty achievements across campus. It also includes important deadlines for upcoming faculty awards, reminders about evaluation and review processes, and updates on tools and initiatives such as Faculty Insight, Interfolio, and our faculty development partners. We encourage you to explore this issue and take advantage of the many resources designed to advance faculty excellence, leadership, and community at UIC.

Mike Stieff
Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs

The nomination cycle for internal faculty awards for the 2026–27 academic year is now open. These prestigious awards recognize faculty excellence across teaching, scholarship, and leadership and reflect UIC’s commitment to honoring contributions that advance the university’s mission.

Nominations are due Friday, February 20, and must be submitted online in accordance with the published guidelines.

The awards include:

Faculty members, department leaders, and academic units are encouraged to participate in the nomination process and help highlight outstanding contributions across campus.

OVPFA was pleased to join Provost Karen Colley and Vice Chancellor Robert Barish in celebrating faculty promotion and tenure milestones on Tuesday, October 21. This campus-wide celebration recognized faculty achievements across UIC and honored the dedication, scholarship, teaching excellence, and service that these milestones represent.

Promotion and tenure mark meaningful moments in a faculty member’s academic career. They reflect sustained contributions to the university’s mission and the strength of UIC’s scholarly community. We were proud to gather with colleagues to acknowledge these accomplishments and highlight the vital role faculty play in advancing research, teaching, and public impact.

The Teaching Recognition Program (TRP) celebrates sustained excellence in teaching and long-term commitment to student learning at UIC. Administered by faculty and offered through the Office of the Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, the program honors faculty who demonstrate outstanding teaching performance over the past three academic years.

TRP is open to tenured, tenure-track, and non-tenure-track faculty who have made significant and consistent contributions to teaching and educational innovation at UIC. Recipients are awarded a $1,500 permanent increase to their annual base salary in recognition of their achievement.

We are proud to recognize the 2025–26 TRP recipients and extend our sincere congratulations. Their dedication, creativity, and impact in the classroom exemplify UIC’s commitment to inclusive, high-quality education and student success.

Please save the date for UIC’s annual Faculty Awards Ceremony and Reception, which will take place on Monday, March 9, 2026. This event recognizes faculty excellence across disciplines and celebrates outstanding contributions to teaching, research, service, and leadership.

OVPFA continues to advance the implementation of Interfolio as a centralized platform supporting promotion, tenure, and other faculty review processes. Building on information shared in the fall newsletter, a dedicated Interfolio at UIC webpage is now available.

The webpage includes:

This page will be updated regularly as implementation progresses and additional resources become available.

As we begin the new year, tenured and tenure-track faculty are encouraged to log into Faculty Insight and review their profiles to ensure that all information is current and accurate. Faculty Insight supports visibility of scholarly work and enables faculty to:

If you identify missing information or errors in your profile, assistance is available through the support resources below.

OVPFA invites department heads and chairs to participate in the Professional Development (PD) + Success Series this spring. Designed specifically for academic leaders, this series offers focused, practical guidance and opportunities for peer learning and discussion. Sessions are open to both new and continuing unit executive officers.

All workshops take place on Fridays from 10:00 - 11:30 a.m.:

The series emphasizes shared learning, applied leadership strategies, and institutional context to support effective academic administration. Current department heads and chairs will receive Outlook calendar invitations with corresponding Zoom links.

Tenured associate and full professors interested in exploring academic administrative leadership are encouraged to apply to the Faculty-Administrator Leadership Program (FALP). 

This cohort-based program offers a practical introduction to university administration and provides exposure to leadership roles such as director, department head, or chair, and associate dean.

Participants deepen their understanding of institutional operations, develop leadership skills, and build networks with current and future leaders across campus. The program is designed to support faculty considering leadership pathways while strengthening UIC’s leadership pipeline. Applications open April 1.

OVPFA’s annual Promotion and Tenure Workshops begin in March and are designed to support both faculty and academic leaders navigating the P&T process. These workshops feature faculty panels, members of the university promotion and tenure committee, and experienced administrators.

P&T Mentoring Workshops for Faculty
These sessions help faculty understand expectations, timelines, and strategies for preparing strong cases for promotion and/or tenure. Workshops are available for tenure-system and non-tenure-system faculty, including junior, mid-career, and underrepresented faculty.

Guiding and Supporting Faculty Through Promotion and Tenure
These workshops focus on strategies for unit executive officers, including supporting faculty development, preparing effective cases, and managing review processes with clarity and consistency.

Faculty and administrators are encouraged to plan ahead for required evaluations and review processes to ensure they are conducted thoughtfully and support faculty development and success.

Annual Evaluations of Faculty
Annual evaluations are a foundational component of faculty development, particularly in the early stages of an academic career. Annual evaluations for the 2025–26 academic year should be completed before the summer to allow colleges to certify completion in June. The certification form and June submission deadline will be shared later this spring.

Mid-Probationary Reviews
Mid-probationary and pre-promotional reviews provide essential guidance for faculty pursuing promotion and/or tenure. These reviews offer clear, constructive feedback on progress and expectations for advancement. Mid-Probationary Reviews for tenure-track faculty are due to OVPFA on May 22.

Higher education continues to experience rapid change – from generative AI to evolving student needs. These shifts increasingly require instructors to adapt both what they teach and how learning experiences are designed.

UIC’s Center for the Advancement of Teaching Excellence (CATE) is here to support that work. This spring, CATE is offering a short course, Refreshing Your Assignments for the Age of AI, focused on helping faculty redesign assignments that align with disciplinary goals, evidence-based teaching practices, and AI-enabled learning environments. The course emphasizes practical approaches, including clarifying learning outcomes, understanding where AI supports or limits learning, and designing assignments that foster meaningful engagement.

In addition, CATE in the Colleges provides embedded, relationship-based support across campus. Educational developers partner with colleges and departments to respond to local teaching challenges related to curricular change, enrollment shifts, or emerging technologies.

The Instructional Design and Media Production Studio (IDMPS) supports a culture of instructional innovation by partnering with faculty to design engaging learning experiences using media and technology.

Several milestones are planned for 2026:

Accessibility Resources
IDMPS integrates Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA standards throughout course development and post-production processes.

Teach in 10 Series
In March, IDMPS will offer “Teach in 10” microlearning sessions – 15-minute talks focused on immediately applicable teaching strategies.

The Student Evaluation of Teaching Program (SETP) provides important feedback that supports reflection, growth, and continuous improvement in teaching. Faculty are encouraged to plan ahead and communicate evaluation timelines to students to support thoughtful participation.

Spring 2026 course evaluation survey dates:

Instructor resources are available to help faculty understand evaluation reports, plan communication strategies, and use student feedback as part of reflective teaching practice. Also see the Center for the Advancement of Teaching Excellence (CATE) Student Feedback Guide, providing evidence-based guidance to help instructors interpret and apply student feedback constructively.

OVPFA encourages eligible faculty to consider membership in the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). AAAS membership provides access to interdisciplinary scientific communities, research resources, policy insights, and professional development opportunities. Members may also join up to three AAAS Sections aligned with their scholarly interests, supporting collaboration across disciplines. Participation in national professional organizations such as AAAS strengthens scholarly visibility, fosters cross-field engagement, and supports faculty development throughout all career stages.

Qualifying faculty are encouraged to explore membership in the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). IEEE offers extensive opportunities for professional development, technical exchange, leadership engagement, and global networking through its societies and communities. Membership supports faculty engagement with emerging research, industry collaboration, and interdisciplinary innovation across engineering, technology, and related fields.

To support academic leadership across campus, UIC maintains an institutional partnership with EAB, a national organization that provides research, tools, and best practices to strengthen university operations and student success.

Through this partnership, faculty administrators have access to briefings, toolkits, and peer-tested strategies related to budgeting, enrollment management, academic policy, leadership development, and succession planning. Once an EAB account is created, users can access research libraries, attend virtual events, and connect with peers across higher education. This partnership is designed to provide timely insights and practical guidance aligned with unit priorities.

OVPFA is pleased to announce the launch of its LinkedIn page, extending faculty-focused communications beyond campus channels. The page highlights programs, recognition, professional development opportunities, and initiatives that support faculty success at UIC. We invite faculty, administrators, and partners to follow the page and engage with content that reflects the depth and impact of UIC’s faculty community.

The Faculty Advisory Committee (FAC) plays a vital role in shared governance by ensuring faculty perspectives are reflected in university decision-making. With new vacancies this year, faculty are encouraged to consider participating in this important leadership opportunity.

The FAC provides advice and recommendations on matters affecting the academic staff, offers an avenue for consideration of concerns and grievances, and supports direct communication between faculty and administration, as outlined in university statutes. FAC nomination petitions are due March 20.

Recreation & Wellbeing (RecWell) invites faculty and staff to enjoy free access to the Student Recreation Facility (SRF) and the Sport & Fitness Center (SFC) on the second Friday of each month. Participants are encouraged to explore campus facilities, take part in complimentary programming, and connect with colleagues.

Upcoming Dates: 2/13, 3/13, 4/10, 5/08