The application is currently closed. Please check back in fall 2025.

What are the teaching development scholarships for, in general?

The Teaching Academy offers these prestigious teaching scholarships for Texas Tech faculty members who are interested in attending a conference dedicated to teaching and learning. This scholarship may afford opportunities for faculty members with limited travel funding to attend a conference of this nature.

Who is eligible to apply for the scholarships?

All full-time professors of practice, lecturer, tenure-track faculty, and tenured faculty are eligible for the teaching development scholarships. At least one scholarship will be earmarked for a non-Teaching Academy member. Preference will be given to those who have not previously received this scholarship.

How much can I receive in scholarship funds?

You can be awarded up to $2,000 to attend a conference. You will need to specify your expenses when completing the online scholarship application.

What information will I need to submit as part of the online application?

In addition to information related to expenses, applicants will provide the following information:

1. Conference details (including title, location, dates, etc.). Please note that travel must be completed by the end of the 2024-2025 fiscal year, which concludes on August 31, 2025.
2. Two Statements
1. Briefly describe your teaching experience, and then describe how you expect this conference to improve your teaching effectiveness, e.g., specific ways to improve your pedagogical strategies, curriculum, intervention strategies, etc.
2. Describe how you might be able to share the knowledge, skills, and values you learned as a result of attending the conference. This could be through a poster presentation, a mini workshop at the TLPDC, or a White Paper.

The scholarship selection process is a competitive one. Please take the time to provide the committee with complete, thorough responses to all requested information.

If I receive a scholarship, do I have to make a poster presentation or present as part of a workshop at the TLPDC?

Yes, all recipients of this prestigious scholarship are expected to share and distribute their knowledge in some way, whether that is by creating a poster presentation for the Burns Conference, presenting as part of a workshop at the TLPDC, or creating a White Paper.

How will my scholarship application be evaluated?

All Teaching Academy members appointed to the Lawrence Schovanec Teaching Development Scholarships committee will review and score each online scholarship application based on two criteria: (1) clarity of potential impact of the conference on applicant's teaching effectiveness, including specific examples and clear and intended outcomes to address the potential impact on students, faculty, and the Texas Tech community; and (2) clarity of ideas for development of a post-conference workshop, poster presentation or White Paper, including how those in other fields may benefit. Each committee member will score the two application statements on a scale from 1-5 (with a 5 being the best score). The scores will be combined into an Olympic score, meaning that the lowest and the highest scores will be dropped. The committee members may also make written comments about the strengths and potential weaknesses of each application. The committee members will then meet in person to discuss the scoring and the comments, and they will ultimately decide the approved applicants and scholarship amounts.

Can I attend a virtual conference?

Many organizations are now providing virtual conference options and this scholarship could be applied either to an in-person or virtual conference.

How many scholarships will be awarded?

The number of scholarships awards varies from year to year, depending on the quality of scholarship applications, etc. A total of $9,000 may be awarded to all scholarship recipients.

What is the deadline to apply for a scholarship?

The deadline to submit your scholarship application is Friday, November 8, 2024.

When will I find out if I received a scholarship?

All applicants will receive an email informing them of the committee’s decision. These notification emails will be sent in December.

Past Successful Applications

Conference on College Composition & Communication- Rich Rice

SXSW Conference- Lisa Low

Teaching and Learning with AI conference- Tricia Pal

Resources from Scholarship Recipients

2024-2025 Committee Members
Kevin Wass (Chair)
Deborah Fowler
Audra Day
Shera Thomas-Jackson
Kristen Bigbee
Comfort Pratt
Kayleigh Millerick
Rob Weiner
Shannon Bichard
Matt Hart
Claudia Cogliser

For questions about the scholarship, please contact the committee chair, Kevin Wass. For any questions about Info Ready, please contact Molly Jacobs.

Past Lawrence Schovanec Teaching Development Scholarship Recipients