NMC Announces 2007 Center of Excellence Award Recipients

The New Media Consortium (NMC), an international consortium of colleges, universities, and museums, today announced the recipients of the 2007 NMC Center of Excellence Award. The award, the highest honor bestowed by the NMC, recognizes demonstrated excellence and outstanding achievement in the application of technology to learning or creative expression.

Symbolized by a specially struck medallion suspended in a translucent obelisk, the Center of Excellence Award has been designed purposefully to make it distinct from other award or recognition programs. Colleges do not compete for the award, nor is it granted within predefined categories. The selection process is based on the MacArthur Awards, and like that program, the nominators and others involved in the selection process remain anonymous as a core principle of the program. They are chosen from organizations both within and outside the NMC, and represent a considerable diversity of knowledge.

“The Center of Excellence Awards celebrate the innovation and creativity that is part of the fabric of every member institution,” said NMC CEO Larry Johnson. “The NMC organizations recognized this year represent the best of our field, and each has had a tremendous history of accomplishment.”

The 2007 NMC Center of Excellence Award recipients are:

• Otis College of Art and Design
  Instructional Technology
  Recognized for their creative, technical, and artistic support of the campus community
  view Otis College video
• The University of British Columbia
  Arts Instructional Support & Information Technology
  Recognized for their leadership and broad support of open source solutions
  view University of British Columbia video
• The University of Wisconsin, Madison
  Campus Technology Partners
  Recognized for their systemic and comprehensive approaches to faculty support
  view University of Wisconsin, Madison video

“The 2007 class of recipients represents the very best of the community of innovators that is the NMC, and each exemplifies the vision that brings us all together,” noted Lev Gonick, chair of the NMC Board of Directors. “Individually and together, these three institutions exemplify the highest values of the NMC, and each has compiled a history of accomplishment that has helped set the standards in the application of new media forms to teaching, learning, and creative expression.”

“The selection committee had a tremendous task and did their job well,” Johnson stated at the Center of Excellence Awards ceremony at the NMC 2007 Summer Conference today. “The 2007 recipients are all acknowledged leaders in the application of technology by any standard. A group that includes schools large and small, the well-endowed and the not-so-well endowed, they represent the best of the NMC. Together and individually they exemplify the state of the art.”

Frequently Asked Questions

Q Who are the nominators?
A: The nominators are drawn from both academe and industry, and are not required to be NMC members. Each is a leader in his or her field. By prior agreement, the identity of the nominators is held in confidence.

Q: How are the selections made?
A: Once an institution is nominated, a set of information is put together to help the selection committee make its decisions. This information may be gleaned from the institution’s web site, from conversations with knowledgeable persons, through interviews, or by other means. The information collected is reviewed by a selection committee that is charged with identifying from among the nominees the institutions most deserving of this recognition. The award is granted without regard to the size of an institution’s staff or resources, and in a manner that ensures equal consideration to successful efforts large and small. By prior agreement, the identity of the members of the selection committee is held in confidence.

Q: What are the categories in which honorees are chosen?
A: Like other awards upon which this program is modeled, such as the MacArthur Awards, there are no predefined categories for selection.

Previous Center of Excellence Award Recipients

• California State University, Chico
• California State University System
• Case Western Reserve University
• Carleton College
• City College of New York
• Johns Hopkins University
• Kent State University
• Maricopa Community Colleges
• Medical College of Ohio
• Pasadena City College
• Northeastern University
• San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
• University of Calgary
• University of California, Berkeley
• The University of Texas at Austin
• University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
• Wesleyan University