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Promoting Academic Excellence at UNL

Faculty Awards and Honors Cather/Bessey Professorships

The University of Nebraska–Lincoln has established the Willa Cather Professorships and the Charles Bessey Professorships to recognize distinguished scholarship and creative activity.

About the Professorships

The first Cather and Bessey Professors were named during the academic year 2001-2002. This is a call for applications and nominations for the eighth class of Cather/Bessey Scholars. The professorships are established under the following rules:

  1. A limited number of Cather/Bessey Professorships may be awarded in any given year.
  2. Faculty members holding these professorships will be designated as Willa Cather or Charles Bessey Professor and Professor of [field].
  3. Any UNL full professor, regardless of discipline, who does not currently hold another named professorship or chair, is eligible to be nominated or apply. A faculty member may not hold a Cather or Bessey Professorship and another named professorship or chair simultaneously.
  4. Cather and Bessey Professors will be appointed for 5-year (renewable) terms. During the fifth year the holder's record will be reviewed for purposes of reappointment; ordinarily, reappointment will be expected to follow upon review.
  5. Cather and Bessey Professors will receive a $5,000 annual stipend.
  6. Selection for a Cather or Bessey Professorship will be made on the basis of a demonstrated record of distinguished scholarship or creative activity. Nominations and applications will be reviewed by the Committee on University Professorships. Final selections will be made by the Chancellor.

Nomination and Application Procedure

Nominations and applications should be submitted to the Office of the Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs by the third Friday in January. The completed dossier should include a letter of nomination or application, a current curriculum vitae, and the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of two appropriate scholars of national prominence not associated with the University of Nebraska who will serve as references. (Letters of reference will be solicited by the Office of the Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs.) The candidate should also arrange to have his or her department chair or head provide a letter of support; the letter should first be forwarded to the dean to add his or her endorsement, and the dean should then send it to the Office of the Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs. Letters of nomination or application, reference, and support should describe and explain the significance and quality of the individual's record of distinguished scholarship or creative activity.

The Office of the Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs is available to provide advice on the best way to assemble a file for consideration.


Awards