Family Medicine attracts exceptional faculty and staff who make remarkable contributions to the department, to the specialty, and to the communities they serve.

We are excited to invite you to nominate current faculty and staff affiliated with the department for awards to celebrate their achievements.

Categories

Choose the category that best matches the strengths of the nominee. We expect to offer up to one award per category. Full descriptions of each category are listed under “Descriptions” near the end of this page:

  1. Administrative Excellence
  2. Clinical Service Excellence 
  3. Educational Excellence 
  4. Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) Excellence
  5. Leadership Excellence 
  6. Research & Scholarship Excellence
  7. Team Excellence

Eligibility

  • Anyone currently affiliated with the Department of Family Medicine is eligible. This includes academic faculty, UWMPC faculty, and WWAMI faculty, and DFM-affiliated staff.  
  • All categories are open to both faculty and staff nominees.  
  • Teams should be nominated for Team Excellence; all other categories are intended for individual nominees. 
  • Posthumous nominations and nominations of retirees are not eligible.  
  • DFM Award winners from prior years are listed here (click). 
    • Previous recipients of DFM Awards are not eligible to receive an award in the same category but may be nominated for a different category.  
    • Individuals who have been part of a team that previously received an award are eligible for an award of any category.   
  • Current Award Selection Committee members (click heading below for list) are not eligible for awards; committee members serve for two years.
  • Matt Jaffy – co-chair
  • Ying Zhang – co-chair
  • Tara Zimmerman – ex officio member
  • Holly Andrilla
  • Tove Blake
  • Travis Bomengen
  • Joel Carey
  • Gwen Credit
  • Iman Majd
  • Molly Ormsby
  • Lauren Paladino
  • Mari Yamamoto

Nominations

  • Nominators may submit ONE nomination per category. Please consider your choice and select the nominee you feel best exemplifies the spirit of the Award.
  • Nominators are encouraged to consider nominees at any level, including subordinates, peers, supervisors, and others.
  • Nominators need not be members of the DFM, but nominations must include specific examples of the nominee’s excellence and illustrate the impact the nominee has made to the DFM and/or the discipline of Family Medicine.  
  • Self-nominations will not be accepted. For Team Excellence Awards, a nominator may lead or be a member of a team they are nominating, but in that case, they may not also be named as a recipient in the nomination.
  • Nominators who would like guidance on their nomination are encouraged to contact any DFM Award Selection Committee Member or Tara Zimmerman, ex officio Member.  
  • If you are re-nominating a person you’ve nominated previously, please update your nomination with special attention to the rubric and add new content for 2025.

Nomination deadline is April 23rd, 2025 

Selection

Selection of award recipients will be completed by an Award Selection Committee (comprised of staff and faculty from many sectors of the department) using a scoring rubric. The rubric for each category is linked below. Scoring will be based on submitted written nomination information only. We ask Award Selection Committee members not to factor prior knowledge of nominees into scoring. 

DFM Awards are designed to celebrate excellence. The scoring rubrics for awards are focused on demonstrative examples. Successful nominations will include specifics, not generalities. It is possible that a nomination will be submitted that does not provide enough information or specific examples for the nomination to move forward. The Award Selection Committee reserves the right to not name a winner if nominations in a specific category do not provide enough detail to demonstrate excellence.

Descriptions

This award celebrates individuals who have made significant contributions to advancing the mission and vision of the DFM, improving staff and faculty morale and cohesion, and/or innovating and serving the needs of our organization, patients, and communities through administrative roles.   

Criteria/Consideration for Administrative Excellence Award 

Recipient will be chosen based on criteria. Nominee should exemplify many of the listed criteria in their award category, though they are not required to exemplify ALL criteria to be competitive. 

  1. Outstanding job performance 
  2. Creativity and innovation to serve the needs of our organization, patients, and/or communities
  3. Influential team member, attending to staff and faculty morale and cohesion
  4. Leadership ability 
  5. Evidence of service to the department or University

Click for Scoring Rubric for Administrative Excellence Award 

 

This award celebrates any individuals who have made significant contributions to clinical care of patients and their communities and who have promoted teamwork with clinical staff and institutions/organizations. Contributions to health equity and addressing the needs of under-resourced communities will be highlighted in this award. 

Criteria/Consideration for Clinical Excellence Award 

Recipient will be chosen based on criteria. Nominee should exemplify many of the listed criteria in their award category, though they are not required to exemplify ALL criteria to be competitive. 

  1. Unwavering dedication to patient care
  2. Exemplary relationships with both patients and clinical colleagues
  3. Evidence of exceptional knowledge relevant to their position
  4. Commitment to continued learning
  5. Contributions to health equity, patient advocacy, and care of under-resourced communities

Click for Scoring Rubric for Clinical Excellence Award 

This award celebrates any individuals who have made significant contributions to teaching and mentorship of learners and/or colleagues. Consideration will be given to nominees who have demonstrated work in curricular development and innovation and those who have made impacts in improving diversity and inclusion in medical/health education fields. 

Criteria/Consideration for Educational Excellence Award 

Recipient will be chosen based on criteria. Nominee should exemplify many of the listed criteria in their award category, though they are not required to exemplify ALL criteria to be competitive. 

  1. Extensive knowledge and mastery of the subject matter relevant to educational role
  2. Creativity and innovation in course and curriculum design and/or organization
  3. Ability to inspire, guide, and mentor learners 
  4. Demonstrated impacts in improving diversity and inclusion in medical/health education fields
  5. Service as a mentor, collaborator, and/or consultant to faculty and teaching assistants thereby helping to enrich the scholarship of teaching and learning

Click for Scoring Rubric for Educational Excellence Award 

This award celebrates individuals who have made significant contributions to improving diversity within the DFM community, supporting inclusion and equity within our workplace and communities, and promoting and advocating for justice in our work environment and larger organization. 

Criteria/Consideration for JEDI Excellence Award 

Recipient will be chosen based on criteria. Nominee should exemplify many of the listed criteria in their award category, though they are not required to exemplify ALL criteria to be competitive. 

  1. Actions that promote an environment that is welcoming, supportive, and nurturing to all
  2. Actions that raise awareness and consciousness about diversity and inclusion across DFM
  3. Advocacy that has had a significant impact on justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion within DFM
  4. Publication/presentation/dissemination or sharing of information that promotes JEDI
  5. Service as a mentor to under-represented in medicine (URM) learners and/or colleagues by supporting career, leadership, or scholarship development.

Click for Scoring Rubric for JEDI Excellence Award 

This award celebrates individuals who have made significant contributions to advancing the mission and vision of the Department of Family Medicine. Consideration will be given to nominees who have demonstrated commitment to teamwork and contributions to diversity, inclusion, and equity within the organization. 

Criteria/Consideration for Leadership Excellence Award 

Recipient will be chosen based on criteria. Nominee should exemplify many of the listed criteria in their award category, though they are not required to exemplify ALL criteria to be competitive. 

  1. Leadership towards positive and sustainable goals within the DFM
  2. Demonstration of innovation and creativity that leads to new or improved processes
  3. Service as an advocate, mentor, and/or guide for professional development
  4. Demonstration of commitment to teamwork
  5. Active listening (seeking to understand before being understood)
  6. Solicitation of feedback and input
  7. Demonstrated contributions to diversity, inclusion, and equity within the DFM
  8. Provision of constructive criticism that leads to growth and development

Click for Scoring Rubric for Leadership Excellence Award 

This award celebrates an individual who directly contributes to research and/or scholarship focused on the advancement of education, discovery, and innovation. 

Criteria/Consideration for Research & Scholarship Excellence Award 

Recipient will be chosen based on criteria. Nominee should exemplify many of the listed criteria in their award category, though they are not required to exemplify ALL criteria to be competitive. 

  1. Extensive knowledge and mastery of subject areas relevant to their research/scholarship
  2. Participation in or leadership of original research/scholarship published in peer-reviewed journals
  3. Peer-reviewed research/scholarship presentations (e.g., lectures, abstracts, panel presentations)
  4. Evidence of research/scholarship translation beyond publications and presentations (e.g., community benefit, policy change)
  5. Ability to inspire, guide, and mentor fellow investigators (e.g., faculty, staff, fellows, residents, medical students, community-based investigators)
  6. Local, regional, and national organizational service relating to research/scholarship

Click for Scoring Rubric for Research & Scholarship Excellence Award 

This award celebrates teams that have made significant contributions to advancing the mission and vision of the DFM. Consideration will be given to teams of any size who work collaboratively to achieve their goals. 

Criteria/Consideration for Team Excellence Award 

Recipient Teams will be chosen based on criteria. Nominee teams should exemplify many of the listed criteria in their award category, though they are not required to exemplify ALL criteria to be competitive. 

  1. Demonstration of collaborative innovation and creativity that led to new or improved processes
  2. Implementation of successful, impactful, and meaningful team or committee work
  3. Synergy resulting in team outcomes greater than the sum of individual efforts
  4. Evidence of pooled skills, talents, and knowledge among team members
  5. Evidence of mutual support for one another
  6. Commitment to addressing a project or assignment larger than its members’ individual job descriptions

Click for Scoring Rubric for Team Excellence Award 

nominations are closed