Since 2016, the Department of Chemistry has granted awards to graduate students who show outstanding performance as  undergraduate laboratory demonstrators. Awards are granted at the end of both the Fall semester and Winter semesters. The awards are named for Professor Hugh Anderson, who was dedicated to undergraduate education in chemistry throughout his career as a faculty member at Memorial and provided for these awards through a bequest. The current value of the award is $200. Receipt of this award will be indicated on the student’s transcript.

Nominate a TA

Past Recipients

• Winter 2020: Evan Langille
• Fall 2019: Ellan Berdichevsky
• Winter 2019: Timothy Anderson
• Fall 2018: Azam Sayadi
• Winter 2018: Zahra Ahmadian
• Fall 2017: Kori Andrea
• Winter 2017: Joshua Walsh
• Fall 2016: Jennifer Murphy
• Winter 2016: Yasaman Jami-Alahmadi

Selection Criteria and Procedure

The recipients must be full time students in a M.Sc. or Ph.D. program in the Department of Chemistry at Memorial. They must be in good academic standing at the time of the award. Students who were absent or late from a TA session without permission are not eligible. Students are only eligible to receive the award once. If no applications are deemed to reach a standard of excellence in a given term, no award will be made.

Nomination

The Deputy Head of Graduate Studies will solicit nominations in November and March for the Fall and Winter awards, respectively. Nominations must be received by the last day of classes. An electronic submission form will be circulated. Nominations may be submitted by students, teaching staff members, or academic staff members; students receiving nominations from more than one of these groups will be given extra consideration. The nomination should include specific examples of exceptional performance of their duties.

All nominees will be provided with their anonymized nominations.

Application and Selection

The Deputy Head of Graduate Studies will select the recipient, in consultation with the graduate studies committee. The selection will be based on the nominations and consultation with faculty or staff who have supervised the applicant in teaching roles. If there is a consensus on the appropriate recipient, the award recipient can be selected immediately. When there are several competitive nominees, no more than 3 nominees will be selected for further consideration by the Graduate Studies Committee. The selected nominees will be invited to submit their teaching dossier to the Deputy Head for consideration. In the event that the Deputy Head or committee members has a conflict of interest in connection to any of the nominees, this member will be recused and another faculty member will be appointed in his or her place.

The committee members will each provide a rank of each applicant according to the rubric in Appendix B. The applicants will be evaluated on the basis of all aspects of their performance as demonstrators and/or teachers, including their reliability, efficacy, enthusiasm, and attention to safety.

Each member of the committee will assign scores to each of the applicants for the semester. Scores will be granted on the 4 point scale based on the given rubric. Half-points may be awarded. The committee will be provided with the teaching dossiers and nominations for all applicants received in the last 4 semesters.  The applicants will be considered on the basis of all aspects of their performance as demonstrators, including their reliability, efficacy, enthusiasm, and attention to safety.  The nominee with the highest aggregate score will receive the award.

An applicant must have been nominated in the semester the award is given. Nominations made in previous semesters will be kept on file and can be considered by the committee as additional support for an application.   

Score	Rank	Description
0	low	The contributions by the applicant are inconsistent or unexceptional. Some feedback on the applicant’s performance is negative.
1	moderate	There is evidence of multiple positive contributions, but not beyond the  expectations. The feedback on the applicant is positive but undistinguished.
2	strong	A consistent and impressive record of contributions is provided. The applicant has received multiple nominations. The feedback on the applicant is consistently and unambiguously positive.
3	outstanding	The number and significance of the contributions of is exceptionally high and demonstrate superior commitment and proficiency. An exceptionally large number of nominations are made from a range of sources. The feedback received about  the applicant consistently describes performance that is beyond expectations. The applicant has received nominations in previous semesters.

 

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Appendix A: Sample Graduate Teaching Dossier

Student Name

Teaching Responsibilities

1. Laboratory Demonstrator, General Chemistry I (CHEM 1050), Winter 2015, Supervisor: Nick Ryan
2. Tutorial leader, General Chemistry II (CHEM 1051), Fall 2016, Supervisor: Dr. Chris Kozak
3. Help centre tutor, First year chemistry, Supervisor: Dr. Karen Hattenhauer
4. Marker, General Chemistry I (CHEM 1050), Fall 1050,  Supervisor: Dr. Chris Flinn

Guest Lectures

1. Statistical Thermodynamics and Rate Theories (CHEM 3303), February 26, 2015, Supervisor: Dr. Christopher Rowley

Outreach Activities

1. Demonstrator, Science Rendezvous, May 9, 2015, Supervisor: Dr. Michael Katz