The Robert J. Menges Award for Outstanding Research in Educational Development was established in recognition of Robert J. Menges. Bob Menges was and remains an honored scholar. His long years of work and contributions to teaching and learning and faculty and educational development in higher education can be characterized by his spirit of caring consultation, active participation, and rigorous research. This award honors sessions by POD Network members at our annual conference that reflect Bob Menges’ values and approaches to his work. He loved to create studies out of ideas, and he practiced a wide variety of methodologies and designs. This recognition was established and first awarded at the 2000 POD Network conference in Vancouver.
Eligibility
Original research presented at the POD Network annual conference is eligible for the Robert J. Menges Award for Outstanding Research in Educational Development. Awards are given for proposals that reflect original research, which may be quantitative or qualitative, and may be based on experimental studies, participant observation, practitioner research, or other methodologies that lead to systematic investigation and evidence-based conclusions. Completed graduate theses and dissertations are eligible for consideration. The number of awards (generally up to three per year) will be determined by the Subcommittee annually based on the quality of submissions. Note: Proposals describing the implementation of an innovative program or reflection on best practices are not consistent with this Award.
Proposal Procedure
To self-nominate for the Robert J. Menges Award for Outstanding Research in Educational Development, simply check the Menges self-nomination box on the annual conference session proposal form. Authors of self-nominated proposals which are accepted for the conference are later asked to submit an extended proposal of their project. The proposal—typically due at the end of June—should describe work which is complete or nearly complete in order to be considered for the award. Click here to view a draft of the proposal template.
Criteria
The selection criteria are as follows:
- An accepted conference session proposal, self-identified as sound and rigorous research in any area appropriate to the mission of the POD Network that has the potential to significantly impact the field or scholarship of educational development.
- A complete extended research award proposal, including:
- strength and clarity of research question and approach;
- relationship to the field of educational development, previous research, and/or theoretical frameworks;
- coherence across data, analysis, findings, and conclusions;
- contribution to the field of educational development and the POD Network mission.
- The research project should be complete or nearly complete so that findings can be described and assessed.
- Award recipients must be a POD Network member.
Past Menges Award Recipients
Please click on a past project title to view its proposal.
2023
Interrelationships of Institutional and Disciplinary Cultural Influences on Faculty Teaching
By Stephen Hiller, Indiana University
2022
by Carol Hernandez of Northeastern University
Honorable Mention: Re-envisioning Trauma-Informed Teaching: Empowering Students’ Personal and Academic Growth
by Ashley Hooper of University of California, Agriculture & Natural Resources, Misbah Hyder, Thomas M. Colclough, and Daniel Mann of University of California, Irvine
2021
Tracking the Transfer of Research-Based Instructional Social Presence Practices
by Lisa LaCross, David S. Williams, and S. Raj Chaudhury, University of South Alabama
2020
Faculty Community of Inquiry Transforms Online Teaching Perceptions and Practices
by Karen Skibba and Maria Widmer, University of Wisconsin–Madison
Outcomes of a hybrid, multi-institutional course design workshop series
by Darren Hoffmann and Lisa Kelly, University of Iowa; Katie Kearns, Leslie Drane, and Madeleine Gonin, Indiana University–Bloomington; Preston Cumming, University of Colorado–Boulder; and Lisa Rohde, University of Nebraska–Lincoln
2019
Students Helping Students Provide Valuable Feedback on Course Evaluations
by Adriana Signorini, Sandy Dorantes, and Mariana Abuan, University of California, Merced
2018
A Campus-wide Strategy to Develop Metacognition in Gateway Courses
by Eric Kaldor and Holly Swanson, University of Rhode Island
Honorable Mention:
Making Assessment Matter: Linking Interventions, Instructional Practices, and Academic Achievement
by Lindsay Wheeler and Dorothe Bach, University of Virginia
2017
Why Do We Teach? Examining Faculty Teaching Experiences and Motivation
Allison BrckaLorenz, Indiana University Bloomington; Robert Stupnisky, University of North Dakota; and Bridget Yuhas, Indiana University Bloomington
Understanding Instructors’ Conceptualization of Course Design To Enhance Faculty Development
Audriana M. Stark, Gary A. Smith, and Julie A. Sanchez, University of New Mexico
2016
No award given
2015
Not Your Granddaddy’s Syllabus: Investigating Student Perceptions of Course Syllabi
Michael S. Palmer, Lindsay B. Wheeler, and Itiya Aneece, University of Virginia
2014
Leveraging Institutional Data to Demonstrate our Impact
Deborah Meizlish, Mary Wright, Joe Howard, and Matthew Kaplan, University of Michigan
The Faculty You Don’t Know: Characteristics of Faculty Survey Nonresponse
Kiernan Mathews, Harvard University
Evaluating the Impact of a Large-scale, Research-based Course Transformation Program
Chantal Levesque-Bristol, K. Andrew R. Richards, Kiki Zissimopoulos, Brooke Robertshaw, and David Nelson, Purdue University
2013
Why Students Avoid Risking Engagement with Innovative Instructional Methods
Donna Ellis, University of Waterloo
2013
Why Students Avoid Risking Engagement with Innovative Instructional Methods
Donna Ellis, University of Waterloo
2012
Empowering Faculty to Improve Students’ Learning through Collaborative Assessment
Mary-Ann Winkelmes and Elisa Mustari, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Effects of Virtual Labs and Cooperative Learning in Anatomy Instruction
Andrew Saltarelli and Cary Roseth, Michigan State University; William Saltarelli, Central Michigan University
2011
Examining Effective Faculty Practice: Teaching Clarity and Student Engagement
Allison BrckaLorenz, Eddie R. Cole, Jillian Kinzie, and Anthony Ribera at Indiana University at Bloomington
Five Years Later. What Have We Learned about Mentoring Networks?
Jung H. Yun, Mary Deane Sorcinelli, and Brian Baldi at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst
2010
Multi-Institutional Perspectives on Senior Faculty Engagement
Christy Crutsinger, University of North Texas; Kiernan Mathews, Brendan Russell, and Cathy Trower, Harvard University
Engaging Faculty in Outcomes Assessment
Elizabeth Evans, Concordia University Wisconsin
2009
Where are CTLs? Implications for Strategic Planning and Research
Sally Kuhlenschmidt, Western Kentucky University
Taking Stock: Contemplating North American GSPD Programs and Developers
Dieter Schönwetter, University of Manitoba; Donna Ellis, University of Waterloo
Understanding and Supporting Full-time Nontenure-track (FTNT) Faculty: A Welcome Change
Megan Palmer, Genevieve Shaker, Nancy Chism, Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis
2008
Developing an Evidence-Based Curriculum and Assessment: The History Learning Project
Joan Middendorf, George Rehrey, Indiana University
Implications/Applications of an International Study of Faculty Skills and Roles
Michael Theall, Youngstown State University; Raoul Arreola, University of Tennessee Health Science Center; Bonnie Mullinix, TLT Group, Inc.
2007
Advancing from the Periphery: Changing Faculty Development’s Institutional Involvement
Connie Schroeder, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
A Study of Mid-Career Faculty: Implications for Practice
Deborah DeZure, Roger Baldwin, Kristin Moretto, Allyn Shaw, Michigan State University
Refocusing the Lens: The Priority of Understanding Course Design Approaches
Donna Harp Ziegenfuss, Widener University
2006
Effective Teachers’ Conceptions of Teaching in a Research-Intensive University
Jim Borgford-Parnell, University of Washington
Simulation: Linking Theory with Practice
Kathie Lasater, Oregon Health & Science University School of Nursing
2005
Promoting Student Success: DEEP Lessons for Teaching and Learning
Jillian Kinzie, Indiana University & Barbara Cambridge, National Council of Teachers of English
Student Engagement and Faculty Development: Faculty Perceptions and Practices
Thomas Nelson Laird, Indiana University – Bloomington, Jennifer Buckley & Michael Schwarz, Indiana University
Overcoming International Students’ Difficulties in Disciplinary Speaking
Soonhyang Kim, The Ohio State University
2004
Documenting the Academic Culture: A Teaching Center Research Project
Anita Gandolfo, US Military Academy
2003
Vision to Reality: Evaluating Instructional Interventions that Prepare Future Professoriate
Donna Ellis, Dieter Schonwetter, & Martha Roberts, University of Waterloo
International Perspectives on Faculty Development: A Vision for Practice
Kathleen P. King, Fordham University & Patricia Lawler, Widener University
2002
Beyond Bean Counting: Making Faculty Development Needs Assessment More Meaningful
Corly Brooke & Pamela Patterson, Iowa State University
Interpreting Dreams of Future Professoriate: Trend Analysis of 750 Current Job Descriptions
Dieter Schonwetter & Lynn Taylor, University of Manitoba
Critical Thinking–Assessing What is Hard to “See”
Peggy Weissinger, Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis
2001
Assessing and Re-invigorating GTA Programs: Pivotal Events in GTA Experience
Dr. Kathleen Smith, University of Georgia
Faculty Development: A Lever for Faculty Involvement in Change
Connie Schroeder, University of Wisconsin – Madison
Motivating Students to Learn in Large Classes
Eric Hobson, Albany College of Pharmacy
2000
Diversity Begins at Home: State and Regional Studies As One Gateway to Multiculturalism
Barbara Lounsberry, University of Northern Iowa
Research-based Practices in the Design, Offering, and Evaluation of Faculty and TA Workshops
G. Roger Sell & Sheryl Welte Emch, University of Northern Iowa
Improving Scholarship “On” Teaching
Maryellen Weimer, Berks Lehigh Valley College-Penn State