Teaching Excellence Award

The Teaching Excellence Award recognizes an individual or group’s success in the development and delivery of a specific educational experience that yields exceptional student learning. Any IDEC member in good standing can make a nomination for the IDEC Teaching Excellence Award. Individuals may not self-nominate.

• IDEC member in good standing
• IDEC member for at least two years
• The educational experience must be associated with an established interior design program within higher education.
• If a team is being nominated, one team member must meet the above qualifications and have made significant contributions to the development and delivery of the educational experience.

• Articulation of the purpose, methods, and outcomes of the experience
• Relevance of experience to interior design
• Effective method/technique that yields exceptional student learning outcome(s)
• Specific teaching excellence documented by development and repetition of a teaching effort such as a project, assignment, exercise, field trip, evaluations etc.

Each nomination shall contain the following information:

• Nomination Letter: The nominator must submit a nomination letter (not to exceed 750 words) that describes and addresses the above criteria.
• Narrative (from Nominee): The nominee must submit a narrative (not to exceed 750 words) that clearly articulates the purpose, methods, and outcomes of the educational experience.
• Supporting Documentation: The nominee may provide up to 10 pages of supporting documentation that could include syllabi, handouts, examples of student work, student evaluations, etc.
• Letter of reference: Submit one letter of reference. Nominators are not eligible to serve as the reference.
• Nominee CV(s)
• All submission documents should be uploaded as a single PDF file.

A jury of selected participants knowledgeable in the area of submission and previous awardees will review all nominations and evaluate based on a common rubric. Award winners will be publicly celebrated at the annual conference and will be announced to the full international IDEC community.

Please note awardees will be asked to maintain a service commitment to this award for two years following the award acceptance. This service ensures sustained knowledge and excellence in the review process. Willingness to participate will be requested prior to the subsequent year’s awards review.

• 2023 – Kendra L. Ordia, University of Nebraska – ‎Lincoln
• 2022 – Rana Abudayyeh, University of Tennessee, Knoxville
• 2021 – Lindsey Ellsworth-Bahe, University of Nebraska – ‎Lincoln
• 2020 – Nerea Feliz, University of Texas at Austin
• 2019 – Milagros Zingoni, Arizona State University
• 2018 – Lindsey Fay and The University of Kentucky School of Interiors, University of Kentucky School of Interiors
• 2017 – Patrick Lee Lucas, Lindsey Fay, Christina Birkentall, Rebekah Radtke, University of Kentucky School of Interiors
• 2016 – Miranda S. Anderson & Jay Pengilly, University of Idaho
• 2015 – Jain Kwon, Ph.D., The University of Georgia
• 2014 – Sandra Reicis, Villa Maria College
• 2013 – Candy Carmel-Gilfilen, University of Florida
• 2012 – Judy Theodorson, Washington State University
• 2011 – Abimbola Asojo, University of Oklahoma