ACM Karl V. Karlstrom Outstanding Educator Award

Overview

The Karl V. Karlstrom Outstanding Educator Award is presented annually to an outstanding educator at a recognized educational baccalaureate institution, who is recognized for one or more of the following: advancing new teaching methodologies, effecting new curriculum development or expansion in Computer Science and Engineering, or making a significant contribution to the educational mission of the ACM. The award is open to both early-career and experienced candidates. The award is presented each June at the ACM Awards Banquet and is accompanied by a prize of $10,000 plus travel expenses to the banquet. 

Next Deadline

December 15, 2025 - End of Day, Anywhere on Earth (AoE), UTC -12

Selection Criteria

Nominations will be reviewed for the quality of the candidates’ work, the innovative nature of the work, and its overall impact on computing education.

Submissions

Nominations for the Karl V. Karlstrom Outstanding Educator Award should be submitted using the online nomination form.  Guidelines for nominators and endorsers can be found here.   Each nomination involves several components:

• Name, address, phone number, and email address of nominator (person making the nomination). The most appropriate person to submit a nomination would be a recognized member of the community who is not from the same organization as the candidate and who can address the candidate’s impact on the broader community. Nominators do not have to be members of the ACM. 
• Name, address, and email address of the candidate (person being nominated). Candidates for the Award do not have to be members of ACM. It is ACM’s policy not to tell candidates who has nominated or endorsed them. 
• Nominators will be required to indicate whether they are aware of any actions committed by the candidate that violates ACM's Code of Ethics or Core Values.
• Suggested citation if the candidate is selected. This should be a concise statement (maximum of 25 words) describing the key technical or professional accomplishment for which the candidate merits this award. Note that the final wording for awardees will be at the discretion of the Award Committee.
• Nomination statement (200-500 words in length) addressing why the candidate should receive this award. This may describe the candidate’s work in general, but should draw particular attention to the contributions that merit the award.
• Copy of the candidate’s CV, listing publications, patents, honors, service contributions, etc. The file must include a listing of the candidate's Ph.D. students and their current positions.
• Supporting letters from at least 3, and not more than 5, endorsers. Endorsers should be chosen to represent a range of perspectives and institutions and provide additional insights or evidence of the candidate’s impact. Each letter must include the name, address, and telephone number of the endorser, and should focus on the accomplishments which that endorser can attest to and place in context. The nominator should collect the letters and bundle them for submission. Please Note: Nominators will need to provide a valid email for each endorser. Endorsers will receive an email from [email protected] containing a secure link to the Code of Ethics attestation form, and will be required to indicate whether they are aware of any actions committed by the candidate that violates ACM's Code of Ethics or Core Values.

For questions on the above, please contact us at [email protected], or Jade Morris, ACM Awards Committee Liaison.  ACM's conflict-of-interest guidelines apply to all award nominations.