The Zuckerberg Leadership Prize

University of Massachusetts > AASAIR > The 2008 Zuckerberg Leadership Prize

The Roy J. Zuckerberg Endowed Leadership Prize is designed to reward leaders of courage, conviction, and selflessness who have devoted their time and talent to helping the University of Massachusetts to accomplish its goals. Recognizing that leadership may be found anywhere, faculty, coaches, and staff of the University of Massachusetts are encouraged to apply. The award will alternate yearly between a faculty member (when it is termed the chair) and a coach/staff member (when it is termed the prize). In 2008, it will be awarded to a staff member.

The total award is $60,000. The awardee will receive approximately $35,000 to support their leadership research, teaching or service linked to a demonstration of leadership and approximately $25,000 will be given to the awardee as a stipend.

The recipient will be selected annually by a committee with representation from each campus and the president's office. The committee will be chaired by the Provost of UMass Lowell.

The committee will grant awards once each academic year to faculty or staff of exemplary character with the proven ability to lead others at the University in their field of research, in teaching, or in service to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and its students. Awardees will have distinguished themselves through their leadership and commitment to the goals and mission of the University of Massachusetts, as well as public education more generally, especially in the impact they have had on the students of the University.

Examples of award activities might include: offering a conference in the awardee's area of leadership expertise; educating and training others; buying necessary supplies and/or equipment to support a leadership endeavor; creating educational or promotional materials for sharing with others; working with a broader constituency inside or outside the University to engage the community; etc.

Award Criteria:

The Roy J. Zuckerberg Endowed Leadership Chair has three primary aims:

1. To foster leadership by rewarding faculty and staff of good character and high standards who have distinguished themselves in service to the University;
2. To encourage leadership by focusing attention upon leadership's profound importance to the future of public higher education in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; and
3. To celebrate service to the University by fostering dialogue among the University campuses about their shared mission, and further collaboration of their collective goals.

Applications will be judged on:

• Demonstrated leadership impact locally, nationally or internationally in research, teaching or service
• Potential for broader and/or more significant leadership impact locally, nationally or internationally in research, teaching or service
• Collaboration across and among campuses
• Relationship to University mission and goals