Provost's Office

Purpose

The Peer Teacher Program is designed to enhance the educational experience of Hofstra students by involving some of our very best students in undergraduate teaching in their disciplines. These students then gain confidence in their ability to respond, explain and organize the material of their field under the guidance of their professor.

Responsibilities

The peer teacher can help the faculty member engaging with students within and outside of the classroom. The duties of peer teachers can include such things as tutoring, leading class discussions, lecturing, and supervising student work. All activities must be under the active supervision of the faculty member and the duties should constitute a valuable learning experience. Peer teachers must NOT be asked to do routine clerical work or to develop, proctor, or grade tests or examinations, nor should peer teachers perform tasks simply to save the professor time or labor: rather, the work of peer teachers should enhance the engagement of students and professor alike. The principles of these instructions follow the guidelines for Academic Interns.

Eligibility

To be eligible, a student must:

1. be a major in the department
2. be a junior or senior - 5th semester (at least 2 years at Hofstra or another University)
3. have an average GPA of 3.5

Note: Exceptions may be made for FYC courses.

Selection Procedure

A limited number of Peer Teacher spots are available each year. The nomination period is: · Fall semester: April 19 to June 21 · Spring Semester: November 16 to January 18. To nominate a student, the supervising faculty member must complete the online application. Applications received prior to the deadline will be given priority review.

The selection will be made on the basis of the student's record, the faculty recommendation, and the description of the anticipated educational activities and how they will enhance the learning of the peer teacher and the class as a whole. If selected, the student will receive an e-mail informing him/her of the honor. Each peer teacher will receive an honorarium of $100.

Each year the University awards the Lawrence A. Stessin Prize for Outstanding Scholarly Publication. This prize was established in the 1984/85 academic year to reward the scholarly efforts of junior faculty.

Dr. Stessin joined the Hofstra University faculty as a Professor of Management in 1958 and served continuously until his retirement in 1973. After graduation from the Columbia University School of Journalism, he worked at the New York Times and as a columnist and associate editor of Forbes Magazine. Dr. Stessin also published in a wide range of scholarly and academic media. During his lifetime and as part of his will, Dr. Stessin made substantial contributions to our University. His contribution to the endowment fund, which led to the establishment of the Stessin Prize, came with the expressed wish that the earnings from that gift be used as an incentive and reward for junior faculty who publish the results of their scholarly work.

For the timetable for the current academic year, please e-mail provostawards@hofstra.edu

Eligibility of Individuals

All full-time tenure-track Instructors, all full-time tenure-track Assistant Professors, all full-time tenure-track Associate Professors, and all Law School contract faculty and Physician Assistant clinical faculty in their first five years of employment at the time the work is published are eligible. Tenure designates are considered tenure track. Tenured faculty are ineligible. An individual must be employed by the University during the selection process and the work must indicate that the author is affiliated with Hofstra University.

Types of Publication

Books, monographs, journal articles and similar publications that appeared in print in calendar year prior to the award (e.g., 2020 for those awarded in the 2020/2021 academic year) are eligible. Reprints of oral presentations are excluded. The published work must identify the author as a Hofstra faculty member.

Selection Process

Each school, college, and the Library will establish a review committee of three tenured faculty members, not eligible for the award, who will review all submissions from their constituency. Each committee will rank their recommendations, recommend up to two publications, and forward those submissions to their respective Dean’s Office. The Dean’s Offices will submit their recommendation packets electronically to the Provost’s Office at provostawards@hofstra.edu for review by the Provost's Advisory Council, which will select the recipients of the awards.