The West Coast Teaching Excellence Award, hosted by the British Columbia Teaching and Learning Council (BC and Yukon), recognizes excellence in postsecondary teaching over a number of years, primarily at the undergraduate level.
From the BCTLC website: An individual nominated for this award will be characterized by a proven commitment to enhanced student engagement and learning, a reflective and intentional approach to teaching practices, and dedication to teaching improvement including successful implementation of any of the 94 Calls to Action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.
This award is an opportunity for recipients who are on the path to move from institutional teaching awards to national teaching awards such as the 3M National Teaching Fellowship.
The BCTLC select up to five recipients from different post-secondary institutions. Each institution can submit up to two nominees per year. We will hold an internal selection process to determine this year’s nominees from UBC Vancouver. For 2023, full applications from selected nominees were due to the BCTLC by the end of February.
UBC's West Coast Teaching Excellence Award recipients
- 2022: Larry Leung, Assistant Professor of Teaching in the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences
- 2023: Celeste Leander, Professor of Teaching in the Departments of Botany and Zoology in the Faculty of Science
Applications consist of a 20-page dossier, including a nomination letter from the President, Vice-President Academic, or designate.
Please see the West Coast Teaching Award web page for details on eligibility, criteria, and what must be submitted in the dossier.
Process
- Internal applicants should submit a letter (no more than 4 pages) outlining how their teaching practice over a number of years addresses the criteria for the award.
- Applicants will not be able to address all criteria in full in such a short space, so they should focus on those they feel their teaching work most strongly supports.
- An internal review committee will review the letters and choose up to two nominees from UBC Vancouver.
- This review committee consists of:
- The Vice-Provost, Teaching and Learning
- The Academic Director (or the Deputy Academic Director) of the Centre for Teaching, Learning, and Technology
- One 3M National Teaching Fellow at UBC Vancouver
- Two other teaching award winners at UBC Vancouver, such as the Killam Teaching Prize or the West Coast Teaching Excellence Award
- Decisions will be based on the BCTLC West Coast Teaching Award eligibility and criteria
- This review committee consists of:
- The Vice-Provost Teaching and Learning will write the nomination letters, and the BCTLC representative from UBC Vancouver (currently the Academic Director of the Centre for Teaching, Learning, and Technology) will forward nominations to the BCTLC Awards Committee by the deadline.
Timelines from 2023 for reference only - updated timelines for 2024 nominations will be posted in February 2024
- Early October: Invitation to submit applications.
- November 25: internal application due (max. 4 page letter, as noted above) to Catherine Aldana, Project Manager, CTLT: catherine.aldana@ubc.ca
- First half of December: internal review committee meets to select nominees
- Mid-December: Applicants informed of internal nomination decision outcome; candidates will be notified shortly thereafter
- Mid-February: application dossiers due to Vice-Provost Teaching and Learning, to facilitate writing nomination letters
- End of February: application dossiers submitted to BCTLC Awards Committee
Contacts
- If you have questions about the award or the process, please contact Christina Hendricks, Vice-Provost and Associate Vice-President Teaching and Learning pro tem: christina.hendricks@ubc.ca
- Consultation/advice is available for how to write the internal application materials, and/or the dossier to send to BCTLC; please contact Judy Chan at the Centre for Teaching, Learning and Technology: judy.chan@ubc.ca