PAEA Faculty & Staff Awards provide national recognition of accomplishments in PA education. Each recipient receives $500, a personalized award, and complimentary registration to the annual PAEA Education Forum. Our most prestigious award, the Lifetime Achievement Award includes additional benefits. Please see each award category for details.
Important Dates
- The award nomination cycle for 2025 will open February 11, 2025.
- All completed nominators will be contacted in August regarding their nomination selection status.
- Nominees selected to receive an award for 2025 will be contacted by August.
- If selected to receive an award, you must still be in good standing with the PA program at the time of the award presentation at the Forum.
- The official announcement for the award recipients will take place at the Awards Ceremony at the 2025 PAEA Education Forum.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nomination and supporting material submission
Tips for Writing a Strong Award Nomination Letter
Before Getting Started
- Review the award criteria on the PAEA awards webpage to ensure the nominee meets the requirements including years of service, FTE, etc.
- Consider how your letter will address each of the award criteria
- Review the nominee’s CV or talk with colleagues about their accomplishments
Writing the Nomination Letter
- Provide examples of how the nominee meets each of the award criteria, this is the most important for the nomination letter. All criterion needs to be clearly addressed.
- Consider creating a separate heading in the letter for each criterion
- Describe how the nominee exceeds the requirements of their role
- Write a clear, concise, and organized letter
- Ask a colleague to provide feedback before submission
The nomination letter is a key component of the nomination package.
The nomination letter is the most important of all required materials for each award. It is important to review the criteria for the award and address each of them in detail. If you have questions about how to write a strong nomination, please see this article.
All nomination materials were due by 11:59 p.m. ET on Tuesday April 8, 2025.
In extenuating circumstances, some supporting materials may be accepted after the deadline on a case-by-case basis. Please contact awards@PAEAonline.org to discuss your submission to determine whether or not it will be accepted after the deadline. Under no circumstances will new submissions of nominations be accepted after the deadline. Please see each award’s criteria for more information about supporting materials.
Faculty, staff, and administration from all member programs are encouraged to submit nominations. Current PAEA Board members, Awards & Honors Review Committee members, and current students cannot nominate.
Yes, when nominating, please consider candidates both inside and outside your current PA program.
No, self-nomination is not acceptable for any of the award categories.
If, after you’ve reviewed the criteria for each award, you have any questions about which category would be the most appropriate for your nominee, please contact awards@PAEAonline.org.
For the Article of the Year category, you may only nominate two candidates. For all other categories, there is no limit on the number of candidates you may nominate.
Yes, the same person may be nominated for multiple awards if the nominee meets the criteria for those categories.
Please see each award category for specific details.
Nomination letters of do not have a length requirement, instead, they should focus on addressing each of the award criteria fully.
Yes, you can start a nomination, save it, and return later to complete it. However, we recommend that you compile all information required, including the nomination letter, contact information for the writers of the letters of support, and the nominee’s CV prior to starting your nomination.
Once a nomination form or letter of support is submitted, a copy of the form will be emailed to you as confirmation. If you do not receive this email, please contact awards@PAEAonline.org.
Nominations will be accepted ONLY via the electronic nominations form. Hard-copy forms and letters will NOT be accepted. If you are having issues submitting your application online, please contact awards@PAEAonline.org.
Letter of support submission
Tips for Writing Strong Letters of Support
Before Getting Started
- Review the award criteria and consider how your letter will highlight the nominee’s strengths in one or two of these areas.
- If possible, review the nomination letter or have a discussion with the nominator to identify areas where you can provide additional, unique, or more in-depth information that complements the nomination.
Writing a Letter of Support
- For most awards, two letters of support are required.
- Collectively, these letters should address the award criteria to create a well-rounded nomination packet focusing on the strengths of the nominee
- Both letters of support do not need to address the same criteria, they may each focus on one or more of the criteria in greater detail to supplement the nomination letter.
- Consider creating a separate heading in the letter for each criterion you choose to focus on.
- Provide additional, or more specific examples that illustrate the nominee’s impact, and quantify them whenever possible
- Write a clear, concise, and organized letter
- Stay within the two-page limit
- Ask a colleague to provide feedback before submission.
The letters of support should complement the nomination letter by adding additional insights, details, and examples related to the nominee in the respective award criteria.
If you have coordinated with the nominator to submit a letter of support, the nominator will list your email address on the electronic nomination form. When this form is completed, you will receive an automated email with a link to the letter of support submission form. If you did not receive the link to the form or would like to send an additional letter, please contact awards@PAEAonline.org.
See the criteria for each award for the number of letters of support required.
Letters of support do not have a length requirement, instead, they should focus on addressing the author’s first-hand knowledge of the nominee with relation to all of the award criteria. The most compelling letters of support address award criteria. Letters of support should be no more than two pages.
Faculty, staff, and administration from all member programs (including voting members, institutional colleagues, and individual colleagues) are encouraged to submit letters of support, with the exception of the following:
- PAEA Board members and Awards & Honors Review Committee members may not submit letters of support
- Current students cannot submit letters of support. Alumni to the program may submit a letter.
- Non-members can submit a letter of support, but at least one letter must be from a PAEA member. Both letters should be from people who are aware of the award and the professional setting.
Yes, non-PAEA members can be nominated for the following award categories:
- Partnership Award: Nominees should, however, be associated with a PAEA member program.
- Article of the Year Award: The primary author should be a PAEA member, but supporting authors need not be.
- Lifetime Achievement Award: Nominees can be former PAEA members, and candidates may be nominated posthumously.
Evaluation and selection process
The PAEA Awards & Honors Review Committee determines the award recipients. The committee is currently comprised PA educators who are dedicated to identifying and recognizing the outstanding contributions within PA education.
The committee uses a standardized scoring rubric that correlates with the outlined award criteria to evaluate and score each nomination. The committee reviews the compiled scores and reaches a consensus for the official determination.
No, each award is not necessarily given out annually. PAEA’s Awards & Honors Committee carefully reviews the nominations for each of the 11 categories and selects a recipient when the submitted materials closely align with the award criteria.
Yes, the following awards can be received more than once
- Partnership Award
- Excellence through Diveristy Award
- Article of the Year Award (However, someone cannot be awarded Article of the Year for the same article more than once)