Professional Development
Innovation in Online Design and Teaching
Call for nominations!
Innovative Education Presents:
Innovation in Online Design and Teaching Award
Deadline to submit application: Monday, December 15, 2025, 11:59 PM
The 2026 Innovation in Online Design and Teaching (IODT) Award celebrates excellence in online education by recognizing faculty who demonstrate innovative online teaching supported by intentional, high-quality course design. This award honors faculty whose creativity and student-centered teaching practices lead to deep learning, meaningful engagement, and satisfaction in the online environment.
The final award recipient will receive $5,000, a commemorative plaque, and will be acknowledged at the USF Faculty Honors and Awards Reception. Additionally, each institution within the SUS will identify one outstanding faculty member each year to receive the SUS President’s Award. The IODT Award recipient will also receive recognition as the USF’s President’s Award winner and have the opportunity to create a professional, commercial-style video of their online course in collaboration with Innovative Education. Two finalists will also receive $1,000 each.
PURPOSE OF AWARD
The IODT Award highlights faculty who advance the impact and quality of online learning through new and effective approaches to teaching and design. Honorees demonstrate how innovative teaching practices and intentional design choices work together to create engaging and high-impact online learning experiences that support student success. For the purposes of this award, innovation refers to creative and purposeful teaching and design practices that enhance online learning. Innovation may involve introducing new approaches, adapting existing methods in novel ways, or solving instructional challenges through intentional design or online teaching.
AWARD Eligibility
Nominees must meet the following requirements:
Course requirements:
- Fully online course developed (or refreshed) and taught within the past five academic years.
- Online course meets established quality design standards (e.g. °®ÎÛ´«Ã½ Quality Review Process, Quality Matters).
Nominee requirements:
- Full-time continuing faculty or instructor on any USF campus.
- Certified to teach online through any USF online instructor certification program.
- Instructor of record for the nominated course.
Faculty may nominate only one course per award cycle. Self-nominations are encouraged, Previous award winners and visiting faculty are not eligible.
Submission Requirements
All materials must be submitted by December 15, 2025 through this .
Required Materials:
1. Innovation Narrative (max 2 pages)
Describe your innovative online teaching practices, how they are supported by intentional course design, and demonstrate their impact on student engagement, learning, and satisfaction. Please include:
- What challenge, opportunity, or goal inspired your innovation?
- What new or creative online teaching practices did you implement?
- How does your course design support or enable these practices?
- What evidence demonstrates the effectiveness of your innovation? Examples may include participation data, improvements in student performance, learning analytics, or student feedback illustrating engagement, gains and satisfaction.
2. Innovation in Action Video (max 5 minutes)
Record a narrated video tour of your taught online course that brings your innovative teaching practices to life. Use real course examples to illustrate how you engage and support students in the online environment. Please highlight:
- Instructor presence and responsiveness: Personalized announcements, timely feedback, and demonstrations of how you address real-time challenges or adapt based on student needs.
- Student engagement and interaction: Strategies that promote participation, collaboration, and community-building (e.g. discussions, group work, peer review, etc.).
- Authentic and active learning: Assignments or assessments that emphasize real-world application, critical reflection, and deeper understanding.
- Creative design and use of media: Instructional materials, visuals, or multimedia elements that make complex concepts more accessible and engaging.
- Innovative use of technology: Purposeful integration of AI, emerging tools, or other technologies to enhance learning or assessment design.
- Continuous improvement: Ways you gather and act on student feedback to refine your teaching or increase engagement.
Note. You are not expected to address every example listed above. Please focus on the elements that best demonstrate your online course design, teaching innovations, and their impact on student learning.
3. Eligibility Verification Documents
- Online Instructor Certification
- Course Quality Review Report
Selection Process
Applications will be reviewed in two stages. The Learning Design Committee will review all submissions and recommend up to five faculty finalists. Finalists will be shared with the Faculty Selection Committee, which includes online faculty representatives and past award recipients. The Faculty Selection Committee will determine the final award recipient and two finalists. No member of either committee may serve as an applicant.
Submissions will be reviewed according to the following rubric categories:
- Innovation and Creativity – originality of online teaching approaches and strategies.
- Teaching Presence and Engagement – quality of instructor–student interaction and community building.
- Impact on Learning and Satisfaction – evidence that the innovation improved learning and student satisfaction.
- Integration of Design and Teaching – alignment between course design and teaching innovation.
- Clarity, Presentation, and Adherence to Requirements – clear, concise, well-organized submission; adheres to page and video limits.
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Submission Deadline |
December 15, 2025 |
|---|---|
| Review Period | January 5-February 20, 2025 |
| Award Recipient Announced | February 23, 2026 |
Questions
Contact Dr. Christie Nicholas, Director of Learning Design & Research at cwnicholas@usf.edu with any questions about eligibility or submission.