Seymour Schulich Teaching Excellence Awards
The Seymour Schulich Teaching Excellence Awards (TEAs) are annual awards in which
the top ten rated instructors in each of the graduate and undergraduate programs
are recognized by their students for their contributions to
outstanding teaching and student learning.
The criteria for these awards are based on Seymour Schulich’s vision
for excellence in the following areas:
2021-2022 TEA Top Ten Rated Instructors
We hope that you will join us in congratulating this very deserving group of recipients on their outstanding contributions to teaching and learning in Schulich’s classrooms. We are all very fortunate to have these individuals so meaningfully involved in enriching the educational experiences of our students, and we thank them all very much for their dedication and compelling influence in this regard.
Undergraduate Programs
Alex Garber
1st Place Winner
Alex Fisher
2nd Place Winner
Hila Koren Cohen
Marc Colasanti
Graeme Deans
Margaret Hastings
Ashley Konson
Dishan Ratnajothi
Althea Wishloff
Julie Yan
Graduate Programs
Ashley Konson
1st Place Winner
Alla Volodina
2nd Place Winner
Christopher Chan
Graeme Deans
Cameron Graham
Ashwin Joshi
Marisa Morriello
Andrea Stupino
Mike Valente
Klaudia Watts
John Peace Part-Time Faculty Teaching Award
The John Peace Part-Time Faculty Teaching Award was established in honour of John Peace, a part-time instructor at Schulich between 1986 and 1996. John had a small law practice in downtown Toronto, focusing on real estate law, and he also taught business law and real estate courses at Schulich. For more details on the 2020-21 winner and nominees, visit the related post.
2021-2022 Winner
Wissam Al-Hussaini
2020-2021 All Nominees
ACTG: Alex Fisher
ARTM: Patricia Bradley
BSUS: Michael Meir
ENTR: Stuart Browne
HIMP: Joseph Mapa
MKTG: Ashley Konson
OMIS: Mark Thomas
PLCY: Wissam Al Hussaini
Teaching Awards FAQ
Recent change to the administration of the TEA Rating process:
The ONCE course evaluations and TEA rating survey have now been combined into one convenient questionnaire requiring only one login for students. Students no longer need to access two separate portals in order to submit their ONCE course evaluations or rate their instructors for a Teaching Excellence Award. Change is effective Fall 2021.
Seymour Schulich Teaching Awards
All Schulich full-time and part-time faculty who teach a course section* with 20 or more students (consistent with standard minimum enrolment requirements).
*The unit of evaluation for the Schulich TEA will be one course section – for example, ACTG 1000 3.00, Section A.
Excludes: teaching assistant, guest instructor or lecturer, external guest speaker, independent study advisor, 601/602 chair or advisor, major research paper advisor, program director and/or club faculty advisor.
**Please see below with respect to placing in first or second in back-to-back years.
Students will rate their instructors based on their experience in the course, through the ONCE online platform, to be completed in-class during each program’s respective ratings windows at the end of each term in an academic year.
The unit of evaluation for the Schulich TEA will be one course section* – e.g., ACTG 1000 3.00, Section A.
*Consistent with standard minimum enrolment requirements, only course sections with 20 or more students are eligible for the award.
The two rating questions are comprised as follows:
1. In your personal opinion, based on your experience in this course, do you believe this instructor should receive the Seymour Schulich Teaching Excellence Award? (1 to 7 level of agreement scale)
2. Ethics Clearance** – No one attempted to bias my response to the question above. (False/True)
** Ethics question is monitored for deviations in the Top Ten
– Participation rate – minimum required for eligibility: 60%
Instructors with the top ten scores will be recognized, with the top two being the Schulich TEA winners for the year in each program (Undergraduate, Graduate).
Seymour Schulich’s vision for these awards is that the winners demonstrate excellence in:
- Knowledge of, and enthusiasm for, the subject matter
- Exceptional teaching strategies and communication skills
- Positive student learning experiences
- Teaching innovation
- Responsiveness to student needs and concerns
Question 1 – asks students to rate the instructor’s teaching based on Seymour Schulich’s vision.
The Schulich School of Business prides itself in weaving social responsibility into every aspect of its operations. In addition, this question will help to ensure there is no inappropriate campaigning by faculty or students.
What is considered inappropriate bias?
- Telling your students to vote for you
- Telling key influencer students in your class to encourage others to vote for you
- Tying grades to voting participation
- Writing on the board “Vote for me”….or helicoptering over students during the process
- What is okay, however, and encouraged is to promote engagement in the process of Schulich TEA (notice distinction between that and trying to bias voting responses)
All students should submit their personal rating of their specific instructors, based on their own experience and based on their own judgment .
Self-promotion by an instructor is not permitted.
Promotion of a specific instructor by a student is not permitted.
Question 2 – Ethical Clearance asks whether the student’s response was free of inappropriate bias.
Evaluations are to be administered in-class during the last two class sessions of each term in each of the Graduate and Undergraduate programs
Regular 6-wk courses: week 5 and 6
Regular 12-wk courses: week 11 and 12
Weekend courses: last two class sessions
Irregular courses: last two class sessions
- The two-week ratings window dates will vary depending on whether you are teaching regular courses in the Graduate or Undergraduate program.
- Instructors will be notified by automated email of the ratings/evaluation period for the program(s) in which they are teaching as follows:
- 3 weeks before the opening of the ratings/evaluations – for planning purposes – determine in which of the two classes you will hold the ratings/evaluations period, and
- 1 day before the opening of the ratings/evaluations windows – as a reminder.
- Students will be notified by automated email of the ratings/evaluation period as follows:
- 1 day before the opening of the ratings/evaluations windows, and
- 1 day before the closing of the ratings/evaluations windows – as a reminder
- The notification emails (to instructors and students) will contain the link to the ONCE portal
- Instructors will be asked to allow 15-20 minutes during the class to enable students to complete the Schulich TEA rating, in conjunction with the mandatory Online Course Evaluations.
- Instructors may display the links to the portal on a PowerPoint slide for the students to reference during the in-class period.
- Instructors may remind students of the upcoming ratings/evaluations period using Canvas announcements.
- Feel free to remain in the room during the completion of the process, but refrain from speaking to/engaging with your students.
Students juggle many courses and responsibilities and allotting specific time in class ensures higher participation in this very important process for recognizing high performing faculty.
All Instructors and students will receive an email from the Associate Dean Academic (ADA), notifying them of their evaluation windows for the Online Course Evaluations (ONCE) and the Teaching Excellence Awards (TEA).
The ONCE evaluation questions and TEA rating questions appear on the same ONCE questionnaire. The participation rate of TEA ratings is the same as the participation rate of the ONCE evaluations.
Online Course Evaluations (ONCE) collects course and instructor feedback from students, and may be used by instructors for continuous improvement. After the end of the term, and after all grades have been submitted, the evaluations are tabulated and become part of your permanent file and will be taken into consideration for tenure and promotion decisions (for tenure-stream faculty) or reappointment (for part-time and contractually-limited appointments).
The Teaching Excellence Awards give students the opportunity to recognize instructors for their outstanding contribution to teaching and learning based on Seymour Schulich’s vision for these awards, where the winners demonstrate excellence in:
- Knowledge of, and enthusiasm for, the subject matter
- Exceptional teaching strategies and communication skills
- Positive student learning experiences
- Teaching innovation
- Responsiveness to student needs and concerns
Each of the Top Ten rated instructors will be notified directly by email by the Schulich Centre for Teaching Excellence.
An announcement to the Schulich community and students will follow.
All Top Ten rated instructors will be invited to attend the respective GBC or UBS end-of-year formals, where they will be celebrated by colleagues and students in an academy-award style presentation of the awards, culminating in the announcement of the two instructors placing first and second in the Top Ten.
All Top Ten rated instructors will be invited to attend either the GBC or UBS end-of-year formals, where they will be celebrated by colleagues and students in an academy-award style presentation of the awards, culminating in the announcement of the two instructors placing first and second in the Top Ten.
The Schulich TEA Top Ten will also be recognized at the Dean’s Spring Convocation Breakfast, and will be showcased in the newly-established Seymour Schulich Teaching Excellence Awards Wall of Fame in the North Lobby of the Schulich building.
Everyone in the Schulich TEA Top Ten, other than the 1st and 2nd place winners, will receive a $500 cash award.
The 1st place winner receives $15,000 award and the 2nd place winner receives a $10,000 award.
Instructors who place in first or second in their respective program, are not eligible to do so again for a period of three years, within that program (Graduate or Undergraduate program).
John Peace Part-Time Faculty Teaching Award
The John Peace Part-Time Faculty Teaching Award was established in honour of John Peace who was a part-time instructor at Schulich between 1986 and 1996. John had a small law practice in downtown Toronto, focusing on real estate law, but also taught business law and real estate courses at Schulich. Having taught for one term at Ryerson, he left because he preferred the culture (and talent level of the students) at Schulich.
Nominees are put forward by their responsible units based on the instructor’s length and quality of service. The winner is then selected by Schulich’s Management Committee.
The John Peace Part-Time Faculty Teaching Award winner is announced each year at the Dean’s Convocation breakfast.