Awards & Scholarships
ACUI offers dozens of opportunities to celebrate achievements
in advancing campus community.
ACUI offers dozens of opportunities to celebrate achievements in advancing campus community.
Those honored through these awards serve as examples of successful leaders, scholars, and innovators in the field, while scholarship recipients enhance their careers through support to participate in professional development activities.
Distinguished Honors
ACUI recognizes dedication to the Association and profession.
Campus Awards
ACUI celebrates outstanding innovations and programs to serve as models for the value and impact that college unions have on campus community.
- Collaborative Program of the Year
- Excellence in Innovations in Sustainability
- Excellence in Student Training Programs
- Joseph H. Benedict Jr. Social Change Award for Racial Justice
- Outstanding Service Project of the Year
- Shirley Bird Perry Staff-Driven Program of the Year
- Student-Driven Program of the Year
Individual Awards
ACUI honors professionals for their commitment to the college union and student activities profession, as well as their volunteer service to the Association.
Scholarships
These opportunities provide financial support for professionals and students to develop as leaders and advance their careers by attending an educational event.
Writing and Research Awards
ACUI supports projects relevant to the profession that advance the Association’s research agenda.
Guiding Principles for Naming Decisions
In 2018, a set of principles were established to guide decisions related to vetting individuals who are recommended for naming opportunities for ACUI awards and honors. Reflecting feedback collected from the membership, these principles were created by the Naming ACUI Awards and Honors Working Group and accepted by the Board of Trustees. Recognizing the need to balance the weight given to each of the principles, these are seen as a guidepost for naming decisions, not as a checklist. The full policy and procedures for naming of awards and scholarships are available here.
- Due Diligence: The Association should conduct research of the available record into potential honorees when making naming recommendations. The research process and findings should be presented to the Board of Trustees as a key component of its review.
- Purpose: The Association should rely upon its stated mission and core values to guide its deliberation of the candidates and its selection.
- Inclusion: The Association should be mindful of and give appropriate consideration to voices of marginalized or historically underrepresented communities when making decisions regarding a current named award or the naming of any future awards.
- Revision: The Association should recognize that materials that offer an understanding of the past often change with inquiry and that new research may produce controversy. The dynamic of controversy is natural and should be explored for the opportunities that it may provide for clarifying and emphasizing Association values.
- Historical and Institutional Context: The Association should recognize that honorifics given at one time can have significant impacts on current communities. The Association should review the historical and institutional contexts in which past naming decisions were made and then evaluate and interpret the histories of those selections.
- Learning and Development: The Association should recognize that candidates of naming opportunities have the capacity to learn and transform over time. It should consider how individuals have demonstrated, through a legacy of work and/or advocacy, a perspective that aligns with the Association mission and values.