11/04/2025
By Joseph Hartman
The UMass Lowell community is invited to nominate exceptional faculty members for the prestigious Manning Prize for Excellence in Teaching. This annual award honors educators who have shown outstanding dedication to their students and the campus community. We especially encourage students to participate in the nomination process and share how their faculty members have made a meaningful impact on their educational journey.
The Manning Prize for Excellence in Teaching was established in 2015 by alumni Robert ’84 and Donna Manning ’85, ’91, and honors outstanding faculty members from each of the five campuses of the University of Massachusetts. This competitive prize is presented to faculty members who demonstrate excellence in teaching along with exemplary dedication to students and the campus community.
This $10,000 award will be presented to one faculty member from each of the five campuses. Award winners will be celebrated by the UMass President’s Office through a public recognition campaign where honoree’s achievements will be amplified across UMass communications channels to share their impact with a wider audience, including alumni, donors, and partners.
2026 Manning Prize for Teaching Excellence – Key Dates
- January 12, 2026: Deadline for nominations to be submitted.
- January 13, 2026: Nominees are notified of their nomination.
- January 16, 2026: Deadline for nominees to accept the nomination by emailing Manning_Award@uml.edu
- February 13, 2026: Deadline for complete candidate application materials (one pdf file) to be submitted to Manning_Award@uml.edu
- Week of March 2, 2026: The selection committee reviews applications and submits a recommendation to the Chancellor to forward to the UMass President’s Office for approval.
For more information on the nomination criteria and selection process, please visit the Manning Prize website.