The Assistant and Associate Dean award was created by the CGS Board of Directors to recognize the impact assistant and associate deans have on graduate education. This award recognizes individuals who have shown exemplary commitment to graduate education by helping solve an institutional challenge, built new internal and external partnerships, obtained new resources, and advocated for graduate education, to name a few.

If a selection is made, the award will be conferred at the CGS Annual Meeting Awards Luncheon in December 2026 in Los Angeles, CA. If, in the selection committee’s view, the award’s high standards for outstanding achievement are not met in a given year, the committee may choose not to confer the award.

Eligibility Requirements

Nominees for the award must be a current assistant or associate-level dean at a CGS member institution (Regular or Associate) with primary administrative responsibility in graduate education.

  • Nominees must have served for at least three full years at either the Assistant and/or Associate Dean level (or a combination of those two levels) at the nominee’s current institution.
  • Assistant or associate deans whose graduate deans currently serve on the CGS Board of Directors are not eligible to be nominated for the award during the dean’s active years of board service.  That assistant or associate dean may be nominated when their Dean rotates off the board.
  • Regional association representatives are not eligible to be nominated for the award during their term of service as liaison to the board.

The nominee should have a record of accomplishment and strategic thinking, resulting in meaningful impacts in one or more of the following six areas:

  1. Demonstrating creativity and innovation in response to institutional challenges and/or limited budgets
  2. Building partnerships both internal and external to the graduate school
  3. Identifying and obtaining resources, both internal and external to the graduate school
  4. Effectively advocating on behalf of graduate education
  5. Fostering inclusiveness in the graduate community
  6. Engaging student voices (including diverse voices)

Submission portal coming soon!