15 Individuals and 7 Programs Receive Association’s Highest Honors

WASHINGTON, Feb. 22 – UPCEA, the leader in professional, continuing, and online education, has announced the recipients of the 2017 Association Awards. The UPCEA Association Awards program includes recognition of both individual and institutional achievement across the UPCEA membership.

Since 1953, UPCEA has recognized its members’ outstanding contributions to the Association and the field, as well as their achievements in innovative programming, marketing and promotion, community development and services, research and publications, and many other areas.

Award recipients will be honored at the 2017 UPCEA Annual Conference, March 22-24, in Chicago, Ill.

“Leading innovative and impactful education is at the core of professional, continuing and online education,” said Michele Long, Director of Student Services, University of Denver and Chair, UPCEA Association Awards Committee. “The exceptional submissions for this year’s awards demonstrate the remarkable contributions our members bring to higher education.”
The recipients of this year’s awards are as follows:

Julius M. Nolte Award for Extraordinary Leadership is given to an individual in recognition of unusual and extraordinary contributions to the cause of continuing education on the regional, national, and/or international level.

Recipient: Bethaida “Bea” González, Syracuse University

 

Adelle F. Robertson Continuing Professional Educator Award recognizes the scholarship, leadership and contributions to the profession of a person who has entered the field within the past five to ten years.

Recipient: Nicole de Vries, Georgia Institute of Technology

 

Phillip E. Frandson Award for Literature recognizes the author and publisher of an outstanding work of continuing higher education literature.

Recipient: Sean Gallagher, The Future of University Credentials: New Developments at the Intersection of Higher Education and Hiring

Honorable Mentions:
Handbook of Research on Competency-Based Education in University Settings, Karen Rasmussen, Pamela Northrup, and Robin Colson

Disrupting Adult and Community Education, Robert C. Mizzi, Tonette S. Rocco, and Sue Shore

 

Dorothy Durkin Award for Strategic Innovation in Marketing and/or Enrollment Management recognizes an individual for achievement in strategic planning, marketing innovation or enrollment management success.

Recipient: Davia Rose Lassiter, Kennesaw State University

 

Leadership in Diversity Award recognizes an individual or a program representing best practices in promoting the educational success of diverse students.

Recipient: Paul Stapleton, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

 

Excellence in Teaching Award is presented to individuals who have provided outstanding teaching, course development, mentoring of students, and service to continuing education.

Recipients:

Courtney Stewart, Utah State University

Ning Chen, California State University, Fullerton

 

Research and Scholarship Award recognizes either 1) significant new research with implications for professional practice in the field of continuing higher education, or 2) an individual UPCEA member whose long-term commitment to the conduct of exemplary research has made a significant contribution to the literature and professional practice in the field of continuing higher education.

Recipients:

Jerry Daday, Western Kentucky University

CITL Research Team – “MOOCs: Participant Activity, Demographics, and Satisfaction” in Online Learning, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

 

Outstanding Professional, Continuing, and/or Online Education Student: Credit Award recognizes outstanding student achievement in professional and continuing education.

Recipients:

Rodolfo “Mr. Rudy” Castillo, Sacramento State University

Timothy Bryant, Syracuse University

 

Outstanding Professional, Continuing, and/or Online Education Student: Noncredit Award recognizes outstanding student achievement in professional and continuing education.

Recipient: Jermile Richards, Kennesaw State University

 

Outstanding Program: Credit Award recognizes outstanding professional and continuing education programs allowing students to earn academic credit.

Recipient: Online Master of Science in Computer Science, Georgia Institute of Technology

 

Outstanding Program: Noncredit Award recognizes outstanding professional and continuing education programs that do not offer credit.

Recipient: University Learning Store, University of Wisconsin-Extension

 

UPCEA International Leadership Award recognizes an individual for representing innovative leadership in facilitating international professional and continuing education.

Recipients:

John LaBrie, Northeastern University

Madhu Viswanathan, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

 

UPCEA International Program of Excellence Award recognizes a program engaged in activities that promote the exchange of knowledge and ideas of global significance.

Recipients:

South American Outreach Program, Berklee Online

Global Leadership Development Program, The George Washington University

 

11th Hour Award for Leadership is given to an individual, team, or unit in recognition of exemplary character, ethics, and decisive action in times of dire circumstances or emergencies.

Recipient: Susan Koch, University of Illinois-Springfield

 

UPCEA Award for Excellence in Advancing Student Success recognizes an individual or program for advancing the success of students in both credit and non-credit programs.

Recipient: Academic Advising & Student Disability Services, The Pennsylvania State University World Campus

 

UPCEA Award for Strategic Innovation in Online Education recognizes an institution of higher education that has set and met innovative goals focused on online education and been strategic in the planning, development, implementation and sustainability in the line with the institutional mission.

Recipient: BPCC’s Open Campus, Bossier Parish Community College

 

UPCEA Engagement Award recognizes an outstanding mutually-beneficial exchange of knowledge and resources between a UPCEA member institution and one or more external constituents such as local communities, corporations, government organizations, or associations.

Recipients: SPD/FREE Human Services Programs Collaboration, Stony Brook University School of Professional Development and Family Residences and Essential Enterprises, Inc.

 

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About UPCEA

UPCEA is the association for professional, continuing, and online education. Founded in 1915, UPCEA now serves most of the leading public and private colleges and universities in North America. With innovative conferences and specialty seminars, research and benchmarking information, professional networking opportunities and timely publications, we support our members’ service of contemporary learners and commitment to quality online education and student success. Based in Washington, D.C., UPCEA builds greater awareness of the vital link between adult learners and public policy issues. Visit www.upcea.edu.