Awards

The 2024 NCTA Awards Nominations are open for submissions.  All submissions are due by Friday, April 26, 2024, by 12:00 PM ET. 

The Awards and Recognition Committee accepts nominations for the Service and Leadership Award, the Lifetime Achievement Award, New Professional Award, and the Outstanding Program/Innovation Award.  These awards recognize outstanding individuals whose leadership and service have made significant contributions to the testing profession or a program/innovation.  Recipients of these and other awards will be honored at the NCTA conference.  You can find a description of the awards and lists of previous recipients below.

Quarterly Volunteer Recognition
NCTA Shout Out

The NCTA Awards & Recognition Committee will recognize up to two volunteers each quarter who have contributed to the success of NCTA.

Nominations are accepted on-going throughout the year from October - September and individuals who were nominated for each quarter will move forward to the next selection.

Any NCTA member can nominate another individual for the recognition by completing the nomination form.  All nominees must be in good standing with NCTA and nominations will be verified with the committee chair to ensure they are a member of a committee.

Selection
Selections will be made by the NCTA Awards & Recognition Committee quarterly.  Nominations can be submitted at any time and will stay active for the entire year from October - September.  Then submissions will need to be submitted again.  An individual can only receive the Shout-Out once per year.   

Selections are from January - March, April - August, and September - December.

NCTA Lifetime Achievement Award

The NCTA Lifetime Achievement Award is not necessarily awarded each year.  It is presented to a testing professional who is an active member of NCTA and has consistently provided extensive service to the organization.  The recipient does not have to be retired, but in most cases, it is presumed that he or she will be retired or close to retirement.  

CRITERIA FOR SELECTION: The Awards Committee will select, by majority vote, one individual who

  • demonstrates a commitment to the advancement of NCTA
  • has made a strong continuous commitment to the field of testing
  • serves or has served in a leadership capacity within NCTA either through the conference, chair of an NCTA Committee, or NCTA Council Member
  • has regularly attended NCTA National Conferences or other NCTA events

To nominate an individual, please complete the nomination form and include the following as attachments:

  • Statement on how did this person's significantly contributed to NCTA's long-term goals (quality, substance, value, scope, vision)? How did this person’s involvement help make NCTA better than it might have been without him/her?
  • two letters of recommendation from colleagues/peers in the field
  • nominee’s resume

To nominate an individual for the Lifetime Achievement Award, you will need to use the nomination form.  Additional materials should be e-mailed to [email protected]

NCTA Service & Leadership Award

The NCTA Service & Leadership Award recognizes an NCTA member who provides outstanding service and leadership to advance NCTA for 7 or more years. It is not necessarily awarded each year. 

Eligibility for this Award: Must be a member of NCTA, is a testing professional at a college or university, has been committed to NCTA for 7 or more years, and can only receive the award every five years.

CRITERIA FOR SELECTION: The Awards Committee will select, by majority vote, one individual who

  • demonstrates a commitment to the advancement of NCTA
  • has made a strong commitment to the field of testing
  • serves on an NCTA Committee or the NCTA Council
  • has regularly attended NCTA National Conferences or other NCTA events

To nominate an individual, please complete the nomination form and include the following as attachments: 

  • Statement on how did this person's significantly contributed to NCTA's long-term goals  (quality, substance, value, scope, vision)? How did this person’s involvement help make NCTA better than it might have been without him/her?
  • two letters of recommendation from colleagues/peers in the field
  • nominee’s resume

To nominate an individual for the Service & Leadership Award, you will need to use the nomination form.  Additional materials should be e-mailed to [email protected].


NCTA New Professional Award

The NCTA New Professional Award recognizes a new professional in the area of Testing Services on a College/University campus who has fewer than six years working in testing services.  It is not necessarily awarded each year.

Eligibility for this Award: Only professional staff members (employed full-time at a college or university and integral in working directly with testing) in the field of testing for fewer than six years are considered. 

CRITERIA FOR SELECTION: 
The Awards Committee will select, by majority vote, one individual who
  • has made a significant contribution in the field of testing through involvement with NCTA or a state organization
  • has shown potential in the field of testing
  • displays genuine support and regard for testing policies and procedures
  • shows concern for individuals testing in the office and on their campus
  • has attended at least one NCTA National Conference
To nominate an individual, please complete the nomination form and include the following as attachments: 
  • Statement on why/how you feel the nominee has contributed to the field of testing and additional comments.
  • two letters of recommendation from colleagues/peers in the field
  • the nominee’s resume
To nominate an individual for the New Professional Award, you will need to use the nomination form.  Additional materials should be e-mailed to [email protected].


NCTA Volunteer of the Year Award

NCTA Committee Chairs will select an outstanding committee volunteer to nominate for the NCTA Outstanding Committee Volunteer of the Year.  Only one per committee can be nominated for this award.

Eligibility for this Award: NCTA members who are members of an NCTA Committee either college/university or corporate partner and are members of NCTA.  Cannot be a member of the Governing Board or a Committee Chair on any NCTA Committee.

CRITERIA FOR SELECTION: The NCTA Committee Chair will select a committee member to submit to the Awards & Recognition Committee.  The Awards & Recognition Committee will select, by majority vote, one individual who:

  • Has significantly contributed to the committee in addition to fulfilling  basic responsibilities for the committee membership this could be a special project or coordinating of an event.
  • If you didn’t have this person on your committee you do not feel you as the leader would have been as successful in meeting the committee goals.
  • Given 50% more than other committee members based on your committee demands
  • Is committed to the advancement of the committee and NCTA

To nominate an individual, please complete the nomination form.  The nomination form will ask for a statement on how this person’s contribution went above and beyond the basic membership requirements and provide examples of why they are deserving of the overall volunteer award.

NCTA Outstanding Program/Innovation Award

NCTA will recognize a College/University Testing Office for an outstanding campus program or an innovative process for testing on its respective campus within the last year.

Eligibility for this Award: Only NCTA Affiliated Colleges/Universities are eligible for the award.

CRITERIA FOR SELECTION: The Awards Committee will select, by majority vote, one program which

  • addressed an important dilemma in testing delivery
  • had a positive impact on the center and the campus community
  • demonstrated creativity
  • achieved service delivery improvements and/or efficiencies
  • resulted in organizational improvement because of the innovation
  • showed tangible effectiveness and result

To nominate a program or innovative process, please complete the nomination form and include the following as attachments:

  • an explanation of the program or innovation
  • a description of how this enhanced the testing environment or campus community
  • one letter of support from an individual within the campus community outside of the Testing Office concerning the impact of the program
  • images of the promotional materials for the program or new process (if applicable)

To nominate a program or innovation for the Outstanding Program/Innovation Award, you will need to use the nomination form.  Additional materials should be e-mailed to [email protected].

You may nominate more than one person or program/innovation for the awards.  You do not have to give your name on the form or letter, but it is certainly welcome.  In order to be considered, nominations must be received Friday, April 26, 2024, by 12:00 PM ET.  If you have any questions, please contact me [email protected]