Professorships and Awards

The College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences considers it of utmost importance to recognize exceptional scholars through the awarding of special professorships. The first chair at the University was the Terrell Professor of Agriculture, established in 1854. The D. W. Brooks Distinguished Professorship, established in 1975, is the most recently established special professorship in the college.

The prime considerations for selection of faculty to be awarded a special professorship are the stature and exceptional scholarly contribution of the candidate. Only a truly outstanding full professor of high stature shall be considered for selection. Selection of a full professor to a special professorship or endowed chair is not to be regarded as a lateral move but as a recognition of exceptional merit and distinction.

The significance of the candidate’s teaching, research, and/or extension contributions should be carefully evaluated to assure that they are innovative and pace-setting in the field. The results of the scholarly work should lead to a significant new understanding of concepts and fundamental advancements in the candidate’s field.

The special professorship is a nontenured appointment. Tenure shall apply only to the regular professorial rank in accordance with University of Georgia guidelines. The initial award of a special professorship is for a period of five years. At five-year intervals thereafter, the unit supervisor will review the performance of the incumbent and recommend renewal or nonrenewal of the award to the appropriate assistant dean(s), associate dean(s), and dean and director.

Nominations for a special professorship may be made to the appropriate assistant dean(s), associate dean(s), and dean and director. The supporting materials for the nominee should document the exceptional performance and superiority achieved in the criteria listed in “The University of Georgia Guidelines for Appointment, Promotion, and Tenure (PDF)” and should be prepared in accordance with the general outline shown in the Guidelines. Special emphasis should be given to the outstanding excellence and distinctive scholarly attributes of the candidate which are well beyond those required for appointment as, or promotion to, full professor.

The Dean and Director, in consultation with the appropriate assistant dean(s) and associate dean(s) shall appoint an ad hoc committee of full professors to review the dossier and make a recommendation to the Dean and Director regarding the candidate’s qualifications. The Dean and Director may approve or deny any or all recommendations. Selection shall be made by the dean and director in consultation with the appropriate assistant dean(s), associate dean(s) and the appropriate vice president(s). The recommendation will then be forwarded to the University administration for transmittal to the Board of Regents.

The Terrell Professorship fund was established in 1854 by a gift from Dr. William Terrell of Hancock County, Georgia. The income is used to supplement the salary of a teaching position in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences relating to the subject of agriculture, chemistry or geology.

The general guidelines listed above are to be followed in awarding a Terrell Professorship.

The D. W. Brooks Distinguished Professorship was established in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences in 1975 to honor University of Georgia alumnus D. W. Brooks, who devoted his professional life to improving the quality of society through continued service and support of agriculture and agribusiness. Mr. Brooks was a graduate and former faculty member of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

Purpose

The D. W. Brooks Distinguished Professorships in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences are intended to recognize faculty with exemplary achievements in research, teaching, and extension. The Brooks special professorship is the highest scholastic award offered to faculty by the college. As such, the award aims to recognize those faculty whose sustained achievement clearly distinguishes them in their intellectual achievement or administrative leadership. In addition to recognition of past achievement, this special professorship aims to provide faculty with additional resources for the continuation of their professional development and success during their tenure in the college.

Eligibility

The intent of the award is to honor exemplary scholarship. The appointee should be the equivalent in stature to distinguished faculty in the candidate’s field at the nation’s finest universities. Eligibility for the award shall be limited to tenure-track faculty holding the rank of professor. Under special circumstances, the distinguished professorship may be offered as part of an enhanced recruiting package with less restrictive eligibility rules.

The professorship shall be granted for an initial period of five (5) years. Renewal for a second five-year period shall be considered by the Dean and Director upon the recommendation of the faculty and the department head. Request for consideration beyond the second five-year renewal will require re-nomination. The awardee shall receive a one-time $5,000 permanent increase in salary and a $2,000 annual support fund for the duration of the appointment.

Process

Departments may make one nomination for the Brooks Distinguished Professorship. Each department may develop its own procedures for identifying potential applicants but such procedures must include a review of all applicants by the tenured faculty. The nomination must be endorsed and forwarded to the Dean and Director by the department head or designated senior faculty representative.

The dossier should be submitted in five (5) copies and include the nomination form, a written statement addressing the nominees’s worthiness for consideration (not to exceed three double spaced pages), a résumé, and an appendix of supporting documentation. There should be independent comments from three to five distinguished scholars from outside the college who can provide a critical evaluation of the candidate’s work. The reason why these are appropriate judges should be briefly stated.

Faculty Award for Excellence

 

Nomination Deadline

All nominations should be forwarded by June 1st of the year in which nominations are requested to:

Dean and Director
College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
D.W. Brooks Faculty Awards for Excellence Selection Committees
101 Conner Hall
The University of Georgia
Athens, GA 30602-7501

Award Review Committee

Once the dossiers are received in the Office of the Dean and Director, the Dean will appoint a review committee consisting of the chair of the Level I Promotion and Tenure Committee and three (3) distinguished professors to screen and recommend one recipient for the award. All votes shall be made by secret ballot, and shall be recorded and maintained by the Review Committee. The Dean and Director shall notify the Chair of the Brooks Executive Committee of the name of the nominee. Upon conferring with the leadership of Gold Kist, the Dean and Director will forward the name of the nominee to the President for submission to the Chancellor.

The D.W. Brooks Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching was initiated in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences in 1981 to honor University of Georgia alumnus D.W. Brooks who devoted his professional life to improving the quality of society through sustained service and support of agriculture, agribusiness and the environment. Mr. Brooks was a graduate and faculty member of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

Purpose

The purpose of the Teaching Award is to encourage and recognize exceptional creativity and excellence in classroom instruction in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. The Brooks Award shall be the highest honor bestowed by the College upon a member of the teaching faculty for achievements in instruction.

The successful candidate must demonstrate an unusually high commitment to pedagogy. That commitment must manifest itself in a measured way that highlights scholarship, concern for the development of the whole student, innovations in learning structures, disciplinary methodologies, and adoption and integration of creative learning technologies.

Normally, one Brooks Award shall be given annually for Excellence in Teaching. Beginning in 1996, the recipient shall receive a plaque and a $5,000 cash award from the D.W. Brooks Endowment Fund.

Eligibility

Eligibility for the award shall be limited to current tenure-track faculty with at least a .30 EFT or significant contributions to instruction over at least a five (5) year period and who have been employed in tenure-track positions in the College for at least five (5) years at the time the award is received. Past recipients of the award are not eligible for renomination.

Process and Deadline

Each academic department may submit the dossier of one nominee to the Office of the Dean and Director. Each department may develop its own procedures for identifying all potentially qualified applicants, but such a procedure must include a review of all applicants by a designated peer faculty review committee. The nomination must be endorsed and forwarded to the Dean and Director by the department head or designated senior faculty representative.

All nominations should be received by the deadline as announced.

All nominations should be completed online via this Qualtrics survey.

Online you will be asked to upload the following documents:

• A written statement addressing the nominee's worthiness for consideration (not to exceed three double spaced pages)
• CV/Dossier
• A minimum of 3 and no more than a maximum of 5 supporting letters from students and professional peers within, and external to, the College.

The Brooks Award Review Committee will review all dossiers and recommend to the Chair of the Executive Committee the recipient for the annual award. The Chair of the Executive Committee will forward the name of the nominee to the Dean and Director. Only the Dean and Director shall make public the name of the recipient.

Candidates who were not chosen for the award are welcome to update their packets and submit for the following year.

Award Review Committee

The Dean and Director shall appoint annually a review committee of senior faculty, including the previous year's winner, to screen all dossiers and make recommendations to the Executive Committee. All votes shall be by secret ballot, and shall be recorded and maintained by the Executive Committee. If the committee does not deem any applications suitable for a category, they may choose to forgo awarding the respective category for that year.

Any application that does not meet basic guidelines as outlined on the DW Brooks webpage is subject to disqualification.

Presentation

The award will be presented at the D.W. Brooks Lecture and Awards ceremony. Information about award recipients will be archived on the CAES website.

The D.W. Brooks Faculty Award for Excellence in Research was established in 1983 to honor University of Georgia alumnus D.W. Brooks who devoted his professional life to improving the quality of society through continued service and support of agriculture, agribusiness, and the environment. Mr. Brooks was a graduate and faculty member of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

Purpose

The purpose of the Research Award is to foster faculty development in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences by recognizing exceptional creativity and excellence in the discovery, application, or integration of knowledge which contributes to timely problem-solving of an agricultural, environmental, industry, community, disciplinary, interdisciplinary, or policy nature. The intent of the award is to encourage high quality research of a focused and specialized nature rather than to recognize one's life-time achievements in a broad research field or methodological area.

The impact of the researcher's achievements should be readily measurable and affirmable by industry, the community, and/or national or international peer assessment.

Normally, one Brooks Award shall be given annually for Excellence in Research. Beginning in 1996, the recipient shall receive a plaque and a $5,000 cash award from the D.W. Brooks Endowment Fund.

Eligibility

Eligibility for the award shall be limited to current tenure-track faculty with at least a .30 EFT in research, who have been employed in a tenure-track position in the College for at least five (5) years. Past recipients of the award are not eligible for renomination.

Process and Deadline

Each academic unit may submit the dossier of one nominee to the Office of the Dean and Director. Each department may develop its own procedures for identifying all potentially qualified applicants. However, such a procedure must include a review of all applicants by a designated peer faculty review committee. The nomination must be endorsed and forwarded to the Dean and Director by the department head or designated senior faculty representative.

All nominations should be received by the deadline as announced.

All nominations should be completed online via this Qualtrics survey.

Online you will be asked to upload the following documents:

• A written statement addressing the nominee's worthiness for consideration (not to exceed three double spaced pages)
• CV/Dossier
• A minimum of 3 and no more than a maximum of 5 supporting letters from students and professional peers within, and external to, the College.

The Brooks Award Review Committee will review all dossiers and recommend to the Chair of the Executive Committee the recipient for the annual award. The Chair of the Executive Committee will forward the name of the nominee to the Dean and Director. Only the Dean and Director shall make public the name of the recipient.

Candidates who were not chosen for the award are welcome to update their packets and submit for the following year.

Award Review Committee

The Dean and Director shall appoint annually a review committee of senior faculty, to include the previous year's winner of the Research Award, to screen all dossiers and make recommendations to the Executive Committee. All votes shall be by secret ballot, and shall be recorded and maintained by the Executive Committee. If the committee does not deem any applications suitable for a category, they may choose to forgo awarding the respective category for that year. Any application that does not meet basic guidelines as outlined on the DW Brooks webpage is subject to disqualification.

Presentation

The award will be presented at the D.W. Brooks Lecture and Awards ceremony. Information about award recipients will be archived on the CAES website.

The D.W. Brooks Faculty Award for Excellence in Extension was established in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences in 1983 to honor University of Georgia alumnus D.W. Brooks who devoted his professional life to improving the quality of society through continued service and support of agriculture, agribusiness, and the environment. Mr. Brooks was a graduate and faculty member of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

Purpose

The purpose of the Extension Award is to foster faculty development by recognizing exceptional creativity and scholarship in the application of research through nonformal educational and service programs including, but not limited to, farm and community-based educational program development, and specialized informational service delivery in rural and urban settings. The intent of the award is to encourage and recognize scholarship in applied problem recognition, development of practical programs and solutions to people problems. The solution set should involve adaptable systems that feature the transfer of knowledge and technology.

The impact of the faculty's achievement should be readily measurable and affirmable by industry, the community, the state, and the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

Normally, one Brooks Award shall be given annually for Excellence in Extension. Beginning in 1996, the recipient shall receive a plaque and a $5,000 cash award from the Brooks Endowment Fund.

Eligibility

Eligibility for the award shall be limited to current state specialists, tenure-track or public service faculty with at least a .50 EFT in Extension, and who have been employed in a tenure-track or public service position for at least five (5) years. Past recipients of the award are not eligible for renomination.

Process and Deadline

Each academic unit may submit the dossier of one nominee to the Office of the Dean and Director. Each department may develop its own procedures for identifying all potentially qualified applicants. However, such a procedure must include a review of all applicants by a designated peer faculty review committee. The nomination must be endorsed and forwarded to the Dean and Director by the department head or designated senior faculty representative.

All nominations should be completed online via this Qualtrics survey.

Nomination Deadline

All nominations should be received by the deadline as announced.

Award Review Committee

The Dean and Director shall appoint annually a review committee of senior faculty, to include the previous year’s winner of the Extension Award, to screen all dossiers and make recommendations to the Executive Committee. All votes shall be by secret ballot, and shall be recorded and maintained by the Executive Committee.

The D.W. Brooks Faculty Award for Excellence in Public Service Extension Programs was established in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences in 1983 to honor University of Georgia alumnus D.W. Brooks, who devoted his professional life to improving the quality of society through continued service and support of agriculture, agribusiness, and the environment. Mr. Brooks was a graduate and faculty member of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

Purpose

The purpose of the Public Service Extension Award is to foster faculty development by recognizing exceptional creativity and sustained excellence in the development and delivery of research based education and service programs. This includes recognizing relevant local issues and concerns, formulating effective strategies and prescriptions aimed to resolve local problems, and integrating and transferring the vast body of public knowledge contained in universities and colleges to customers, empowering them to better solve their individual problems. The intent of the award is to recognize exceptional achievement in informal education, communications, leadership, program planning, administration, and scholarship at the community level.

The impact of the county agent's achievement should be readily measurable and affirmable by industry, the state, the community, and/or national and international peer assessment.

One Brooks award shall be given each year for excellence in county agent programming. Beginning in 1996, the recipient shall receive a plaque and a $5,000 cash award from the D. W. Brooks Endowment Fund.

Eligibility

Eligibility for the award shall be limited to current, active county Extension faculty holding a public service track appointment in the College, who have been employed for at least five (5) years and have achieved a minimum ranking of Public Service Assistant. Past recipients of the award are not eligible for renomination.

Process and Deadline

Interested and qualified nominees must submit their applications at the link below.

All nominations should be received by the deadline as announced.

All nominations should be completed online via this Qualtrics survey.

Online you will be asked to upload the following documents:

• A written statement addressing the nominee's worthiness for consideration (not to exceed three double spaced pages)
• CV/Dossier
• A minimum of 3 and no more than a maximum of 5 supporting letters from students and professional peers within, and external to, the College.

The Brooks Award Review Committee will review all dossiers and recommend to the Chair of the Executive Committee the recipient for the annual award. The Chair of the Executive Committee will forward the name of the nominee to the Dean and Director. Only the Dean and Director shall make public the name of the recipient.

The Brooks Award Review Committee will review all dossiers and recommend to the Chair of the Executive Committee the recipient for the annual award. The Chair of the Executive Committee will forward the name of the nominee to the Dean and Director. Only the Dean and Director shall make public the name of the recipient.

Candidates who were not chosen for the award are welcome to update their packets and submit for the following year.

Award Review Committee

The Dean and Director shall appoint annually a review committee of public service faculty, to include the previous year's recipient of the Public Service Extension Award, to screen all dossiers and make recommendations to the Executive Committee. All votes shall be by secret ballot, and shall be recorded and maintained by the Executive Committee. If the committee does not deem any applications suitable for a category, they may choose to forgo awarding the respective category for that year. Any application that does not meet basic guidelines as outlined on the DW Brooks webpage is subject to disqualification.

Presentation

The award will be presented at the D.W. Brooks Lecture and Awards ceremony. Information about award recipients will be archived on the CAES website.

The D.W. Brooks Faculty Award for Excellence in International Agricultural and Environmental Sciences  was established in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences in 1988 to honor University of Georgia alumnus D.W. Brooks, who devoted his professional life to improving the quality of society through continued service and support of agriculture, agribusiness, and the environment. Mr. Brooks was a graduate and faculty member of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

Purpose

The purpose of the Global Programs Award is to foster faculty development by recognizing exceptional creativity and sustained excellence in international education and globalization. The award aims to recognize faculty who have made a significant contribution to internationalizing the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences' curriculum, development of academic and scholarly programs, conducted scholarly inquiry or outreach, or demonstrated superior leadership in program development or administration, which has had a significant impact on international culture or economic globalization.

The impact of the faculty's achievement should be readily measurable and affirmable through peer assessment, by industry, state or local governmental officials.

One Brooks Award shall be given each year for excellence in global programs. Beginning in 1996, the recipient shall receive a plaque and a $5,000 cash award from the D.W. Brooks Endowment Fund.

Eligibility

Eligibility for the award shall be limited to current tenure-track faculty who have been employed in a tenure-track position for at least five (5) years at the time the award is received. Past recipients of the award are not eligible for renomination.

Process and Deadline

Each academic unit may submit the dossier of one nominee to the Office of the Dean and Director. Each department may develop its own procedures for identifying all potentially qualified applicants, but such a procedure must include a review of all applicants by a designated peer faculty review committee. The nomination must be endorsed and forwarded to the Dean and Director by the department head or designated senior faculty representative.

All nominations should be received by the deadline as announced.

All nominations should be completed online via this Qualtrics survey.

Online you will be asked to upload the following documents:

• A written statement addressing the nominee's worthiness for consideration (not to exceed three double spaced pages)
• CV/Dossier
• A minimum of 3 and no more than a maximum of 5 supporting letters from students and professional peers within, and external to, the College.

The Brooks Award Review Committee will review all dossiers and recommend to the Chair of the Executive Committee the recipient for the annual award. The Chair of the Executive Committee will forward the name of the nominee to the Dean and Director. Only the Dean and Director shall make public the name of the recipient.

The Brooks Award Review Committee will review all dossiers and recommend to the Chair of the Executive Committee the recipient for the annual award. The Chair of the Executive Committee will forward the name of the nominee to the Dean and Director. Only the Dean and Director only shall make public the name of the recipient.

Candidates who were not chosen for the award are welcome to update their packets and submit for the following year.

Award Review Committee

The Dean and Director shall appoint annually a review committee of senior faculty, including the previous year's recipient of the Global Programs Award, to screen all dossiers and to make recommendations to the Executive Committee. All votes shall be by secret ballot, and shall be recorded and maintained by the Executive Committee. If the committee does not deem any applications suitable for a category, they may choose to forgo awarding the respective category for that year. Any application that does not meet basic guidelines as outlined on the DW Brooks webpage is subject to disqualification.

Presentation

The award will be presented at the D.W. Brooks Lecture and Awards ceremony. Information about award recipients will be archived on the CAES website.

 

The D.W. Brooks Faculty Award for Diversity was established in 2021 to honor University of Georgia alumnus D.W. Brooks who devoted his professional life to improving the quality of society through continued service and support of agriculture, agribusiness, and the environment. Mr. Brooks was a graduate and faculty member of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

The Purpose of the award is to recognize outstanding accomplishments of Faculty who have contributed to diversity and inclusion efforts at the University of Georgia, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. This award celebrates those who have implemented policies, procedures, and/or programs to enhance diversity. Diversity includes age, race, ethnicity, gender, national origin, language, religion, creed, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, and disability. The impact of the faculty's achievement should be readily measurable and affirmable through peer assessment, by industry, state or local governmental officials.

Normally, one Brooks award shall be given in alternate years (beginning in 202) for excellence in diversity.. Beginning in 2021, the recipient shall receive a plaque and a $5,000 cash award from the D.W. Brooks Endowment Fund.

Eligibility

Eligibility for the award shall be limited to current tenure-track faculty who have been employed in a tenure-track position for at least five (5) years at the time the award is received. Past recipients of the award are not eligible for renomination.

Process and Deadline

Each academic unit may submit the dossier of one nominee to the Office of the Dean and Director. Each department may develop its own procedures for identifying all potentially qualified applicants, but such a procedure must include a review of all applicants by a designated peer faculty review committee. The nomination must be endorsed and forwarded to the Dean and Director by the department head or designated senior faculty representative.

All nominations should be received by the deadline as announced.

All nominations should be completed online via this Qualtrics survey.

Online you will be asked to upload the following documents:

• A written statement addressing the nominee's worthiness for consideration (not to exceed three double spaced pages)
• CV/Dossier
• A minimum of 3 and no more than a maximum of 5 supporting letters from students and professional peers within, and external to, the College.

The Brooks Award Review Committee will review all dossiers and recommend to the Chair of the Executive Committee the recipient for the annual award. The Chair of the Executive Committee will forward the name of the nominee to the Dean and Director. Only the Dean and Director shall make public the name of the recipient.

The Brooks Award Review Committee will review all dossiers and recommend to the Chair of the Executive Committee the recipient for the annual award. The Chair of the Executive Committee will forward the name of the nominee to the Dean and Director. Only the Dean and Director only shall make public the name of the recipient.

Candidates who were not chosen for the award are welcome to update their packets and submit for the following year.

Award Review Committee

The Dean and Director shall appoint annually a review committee of senior faculty, including the previous year's recipient of the Global Programs Award, to screen all dossiers and to make recommendations to the Executive Committee. All votes shall be by secret ballot, and shall be recorded and maintained by the Executive Committee. If the committee does not deem any applications suitable for a category, they may choose to forgo awarding the respective category for that year. Any application that does not meet basic guidelines as outlined on the DW Brooks webpage is subject to disqualification.

Presentation

The award will be presented at the D.W. Brooks Lecture and Awards ceremony. Information about award recipients will be archived on the CAES website.

 

Purpose

To recognize excellence in student mentoring in our college. Outstanding mentors go the extra mile to provide students with information, support and out-of-class learning experiences. An Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award will be presented annually. Award recipients will receive a certificate, a permanent salary increase of $500 and be recognized at an appropriate award ceremony.

Eligibility

The Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award is open to faculty who serve as mentors to pre-collegiate, undergraduate or graduate students, student organizations, undergraduate research or other experiential learning activities.

Criteria to be used in judging nominees:

1. Innovation and leadership in mentoring.
2. Accessible to students and exhibits a caring attitude.
3. Builds strong relationships with students.
4. Engages in developmental and support activities.
5. Impacts students beyond the classroom.
6. Contributes to college-wide excellence in student mentoring.

Process

Each CAES department or academic unit may forward to the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, one nomination per year.

The nomination packet must include:

1. A completed nomination form (PDF)
   
2. A one-page cover letter of support from the department head
3. A one-page biographical sketch of the nominee
4. A copy of the nominee’s personal statement on mentoring
5. Current letters of support from students, alumni and/or knowledgeable peers. Letters from current students and recent graduates provide the strongest support.

Items 2-5 above should not total more than eight pages. Nominating materials must address this award specifically.

Nomination Deadline

All nominations should be forwarded by the last day of final exams for Fall Semester.

Submit an original and an electronic copy to:

Office of Academic Affairs - 102 Conner Hall - Dean Kopsell (dean.kopsell@uga,edu)

Award Review Committee

Selection of the CAES Outstanding Mentor Award will be made the College’s Undergraduate Affairs Committee.