Recognizing sustained excellence in leadership and innovation, as well as the active integration of teaching and learning with inquiry, scholarship, and research. 

This unique form of recognition brings with it a $10,000 monetary award to be used at the recipient’s discretion. 

Attributes and criteria

Competition for this Award is open to all current ɬ﷬ instructional and academic staff, of any rank, inclusive of non tenure‐track instructors and all others who teach in traditional or non‐traditional programs at ɬ﷬. Nominees will normally have an overall total of 25 years university teaching experience comprising a significant commitment to ɬ﷬. Faculty members are also eligible for nomination within 36‐months following their retirement. Faculty members can be awarded this prize only once. Nominees will: 

  • Demonstrate exceptional leadership and vision in the advancement of teaching and learning;
  • Demonstrate extraordinary commitment and enthusiasm for students and their learning;
  • Demonstrate a commitment to promoting equity, diversity and inclusion practices in both curricular and pedagogical approaches;
  • Personify excellence and serve as role models for others teaching at the University;
  • Promote students’ active engagement in learning by promoting inquiry‐based learning and bringing the findings, methods and/or processes of research/scholarship into their classes and coursework;
  • Have made a career‐long contribution to the University community resulting in a significant and lasting impact on the learning environment. 

Call for nominations 

The nomination period for the 2026 Lifetime Achievement Award is now open!

Download the nomination form

Deadline: June 15, 2026 
Questions? tap [at] mcgill.ca (subject: Teaching%20awards%20question) (Contact us).


Congratulations to all past award recipients!

  • Richard Cruess, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences
  • Sylvia Cruess, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences
  • Peter Schubert, Schulich School of Music
  • Henry Mintzberg, Desautels Faculty of Management
  • Ann Wechsler, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences
  • Rhonda Amsel, Faculty of Science
  • Roderick A. Macdonald, Faculty of Law 
  • David N. Harpp, Faculty of Science 

     

Selection committee composition 
  • Provost and Executive Vice-President (Academic)
  • Associate Provost (Teaching and Academic Planning)
  • Representative from the Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
  • Representative from the Faculty of Arts
  • Representative from the School of Continuing Studies
  • Representative from the Faculty of Dental Medicine and Oral Health Sciences
  • Representative from the Faculty of Education
  • Representative from the Faculty of Engineering
  • Representative from the Faculty of Law
  • Representative from the Desautels Faculty of Management
  • Representative from the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences
  • Representative from the Schulich School of Music
  • Representative from the Faculty of Science

Header image: ɬ﷬ President Deep Saini with Lifetime Achievement Award for Leadership in Learning recipient Rosalie Jukier, November 2023 (Owen Egan / Joni Dufour)