President's Blue and Gold Award of Excellence

• Staff employees (i.e. Senior Administrator or Director, MAC, CUPE 233 or OPSEU) with at least two years of service as of the nomination deadline, employed on a career or term basis. 
• TFA members and associate members are only eligible as part of a team.
• Individuals can only be nominated for one individual award per year; however the Selection Committee may choose to reassign a nomination to a different award category, based on best fit with the criteria.
• Nominations are only valid for the year in which they are submitted and must be based on achievements within the past academic year.
• Employees who receive this award may not receive the same award for the following two academic years (e.g. 2021-2022 recipients cannot receive the same award until 2024-2025. They are ineligible for 2022-2023 and 2023-2024).

Team nominations:

• Teams can be up to a maximum of 20 individuals.
• A nominated team member is defined as someone who has made a significant contribution toward a project or initiative. Preference will be given to project-based and/or cross-disciplinary teams.
• Nomination package should clearly demonstrate how each team member has made a significant contribution toward the project or initiative that is being recognized in the nomination.
• Submit the nomination under the team lead's name. If there is no team lead, select one team member's name.

Faculty, staff or students can submit nominations.

• Please contact the award administrator if you have more than one nominator.
• Students should contact the Dean or Senior Director’s Office for assistance in submitting a nomination.

The award recognizes extraordinary contributions in one or more of the following areas:

• Administrative or operational excellence and innovation - recommends and/or designs simplified practices, processes, and procedures to get things done; gets more out of fewer resources; creates systems that manage themselves; implements innovative ideas; improves communication and collaboration among colleagues, stakeholders and/or units; sets ambitious strategic plans that maximize team effectiveness.
• Student experience - makes “above and beyond” contributions towards services, operations or projects that support student learning and life; seeks to understand student needs, is resourceful and helpful so that students have better and easier access to information and resources; provides support and resources that empower employees to deliver an exceptional student experience.
• Scholarly, Research and Creative (SRC) activity - builds bridges using effective communication and collaboration between academic and administrative groups to facilitate SRC opportunities; promotes and identifies opportunities for individuals to engage in research initiatives and priorities; identifies and cultivates external relationships to increase opportunities for research and development.
• People First culture - demonstrates and leads with behaviours reflecting equity, diversity and inclusion; champions and cultivates a trusting, respectful, fair and supportive workplace culture; integrates equity, diversity and inclusion into unit/department operations and policies with demonstrated impact.

1. Obtain the nominee’s consent for the nomination.
2. Complete the nomination package as described below.
3. Submit the nomination package via the Online Nomination Portal on the Recognition Website.
4. Nominee will receive a confirmation email with a link to provide online consent. This step must be completed before the deadline.

The nomination package includes:

• Citation (100 words maximum) – highlight why the nominee deserves this award and any notable achievements. This citation will be included in related university communication if the nominee or team is selected.
•  (google doc) Nomination Form (external link)  (two pages maximum) - questions detailed on the form
  • Completed by the nominator;
  • Bullet points are strongly encouraged;
  • Please save the completed form as a PDF and upload to portal.
•  (google doc) Support Form (external link)  (one-page maximum) - questions detailed on the form
  • Completed by an individual other than the nominator or members of the Executive or Selection Committee;
  • Bullet points are strongly encouraged;
  • Please save the completed form as a PDF and upload to portal.
• Supporting Materials (three pages maximum) – include description of initiatives, examples of work or results, etc.

Visit Tips for Preparing a Strong Nomination Package for more assistance.

The selection committee’s mandate is to select high-quality candidates, whose achievements meet or exceed the award criteria and help advance TMU’s values. Members (or their delegates) include:

• Vice-President, Administration and Operations (Co-Chair)
• Chief Human Resources Officer (Co-Chair)
• Provost and Vice-President, Academic
• Vice-President, Equity and Community Inclusion
• Vice-Provost, Students
• Assistant Vice-President, University Relations

All nominations are reviewed, with priority consideration given to nominees who have not received a TMU award in the past. The committee also considers a diversity of recipients in making its determinations.

An award will not be given if the committee determines there is no suitable candidate.

Nomination deadline: November 5 at noon
Recipient notified by: January 28, 2025
Award presentation: Toronto Met Awards Gala