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Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Awards Program

Deadline:  August 4, 2022
Announcement:  early November 2022

The Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Awards Program supports the research and teaching careers of talented young faculty in the chemical sciences at undergraduate institutions. Based on institutional nominations, the program provides discretionary funding to faculty at an early stage in their careers. The award is based on accomplishment in scholarly research with undergraduates, as well as a compelling commitment to teaching, and provides an unrestricted research grant of $75,000.

Eligibility

The Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Awards Program is open to academic institutions in the States, Districts, and Territories of the United States of America that grant a bachelor’s or master’s degree in the chemical sciences, including biochemistry, materials chemistry, and chemical engineering. Awardees are typically in departments that do not grant a doctoral degree. A potential nominee is ineligible if there is active participation or substantial research productivity in a Ph.D. program of another department or in an interdisciplinary Ph.D. program. Nominees must hold a full-time tenure-track academic appointment, be after the fourth and not after the twelfth years of their independent academic careers, and be engaged in research and teaching primarily with undergraduates. Institutions may submit only one Henry Dreyfus nomination annually. Renominations are accepted.

Selection

The Foundation seeks Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholars who, as independent faculty members, have demonstrated leadership in original scholarly research of outstanding quality, substantially with undergraduates, as well as excellence and dedication in undergraduate education.

Recommendations for awards are based on evidence of outstanding educational efforts and the nominee’s scholarly research achievements with undergraduates as an independent faculty member, as assessed by a panel of distinguished faculty in the chemical sciences. The three outside letters of support (see below for details) are of particular value to the reviewers. Other considered factors are: awards and honors, publication of research achievements in leading journals, and success in attracting research funding.

Budget

The Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award provides a $75,000 unrestricted research grant. Of the total amount, $5,000 is to be allocated for departmental expenses associated with research and education. Charges associated with indirect costs or institutional overhead are not allowed. Defrayal of academic-year salary is not permitted. Funds are normally expended over a period of five years. Foundation approval is not required for budgetary changes after an award is made. If the awardee leaves the institution, the transfer of the remaining funds requires prior Foundation approval.

Nomination Procedure

Institutions may make only one nomination annually for the Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Awards Program. All nomination materials and letters of support must be received at the Foundation office by the deadline. The nomination consists of:

  1. The online nomination form 
  2. A letter of nomination (limited to two pages) from an institutional representative (e.g. the department chair or dean) highlighting the nominee’s research and teaching accomplishments and the basis for selection. In addition, this letter may contain institutional and departmental descriptive information
  3. A summary description of the nominee’s research accomplishments as an independent faculty member and a description of research plans (limited to six pages, including references)
  4. A statement that illustrates the nominee’s efforts in education in the chemical sciences (limited to two pages)
  5. A CV (limited to five pages) including a list of publications in which independent contributions and undergraduate and graduate student coauthors are clearly and separately identified. Research support should be indicated.
  6. A budget (limited to one page) describing how award funds would be used

Send all above materials as a single PDF to: [email protected].

Nominations recommended for approval are presented to the Foundation’s Board of Directors and announced by early November.

Letters of support: Three letters of support should be sent directly to the Foundation from individuals who know and address the nominee’s capabilities and accomplishments as an independent faculty member. A letter from either the candidate’s Ph.D. advisor or a postdoctoral advisor is acceptable but should also discuss the nominee’s accomplishments as an independent investigator. One letter may be from the candidate’s home institution. A letter from neither a former advisor nor the home institution will be given the greatest weight. The letters of support should not be received with the nomination package, but instead should be sent as a PDF to [email protected].

Reports

A final report is due at the end of the fifth year. The report should be concise and contain the following information:

  1. Highlights of research accomplishments during the award period and a description of any noteworthy accomplishments in chemistry education
  2. Research plans
  3. Use of the $5,000 for departmental expenses associated with research and education
  4. An updated CV
  5. Categorical financial report (click HERE for categories)
  6. An optional statement of any newsworthy stories concerning the Teacher-Scholar during the period of the Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award

Send all above materials as a single PDF to: [email protected].

Additional information
  1. Publications and presentations describing work supported by the award should acknowledge the Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Awards Program.
  2. Recipients of the award are designated Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholars.
  3. Procedural questions may be directed to the Foundation office by e-mail at [email protected] or telephone at 212-753-1760.