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Outstanding Project Award

The Outstanding Project Award recognizes colleagues and organizations that have made extraordinary contributions to student and institutional success through community college research, planning, and institutional effectiveness efforts.

Outstanding Project Award Image

Outstanding Project Award Criteria

  • Demonstrated positive impact on student equity and/or the student experience through an equity lens at the organizational, regional, or statewide level. Examples of impact may include (but are not limited to) uncovering and collating evidence-based practices that:

    • Amplify the student voice

    • Increase student engagement

    • Increase student access

    • Reduce or eliminating equity gaps

    • Improve student outcomes, particularly for systemically underserved or disproportionately impacted student populations

  • Contributions to the body of knowledge in community colleges that have practical implications for the IRPE field

  • Use of equity-conscious practices in the design, implementation, analysis, and dissemination of research results

  • Impact on equity in student access, outcomes, experience, and engagement

  • Inclusion of evidence-based practices, models, approaches, or examples that can be adapted, replicated or scaled in other contexts or colleges/districts to improve student success and equity

Download a full description and criteria for the 2026 Outstanding Project Award.

 

Award Eligibility

  • This award is presented to an individual or team for a project.

  • The project must have been completed after January 1, 2025.

  • Individuals or teams submit their own projects.

  • Individuals or teams who have won a previous Outstanding Project Award are not eligible to win the same award the following year, but may submit projects for consideration in subsequent years.

Submission Process

To submit your or your team’s project for the Outstanding Project Award,  enter your project information in our submission form.

Review Process

The IRPE Professional Development Steering Committee composed of RP Group Board members and volunteers from the IRPE field, oversees the process for this award. The committee reviews submissions in February and selects up to two finalists to invite to give a brief overview of their project in a mid-to-late-February Zoom meeting with IRPE PD Steering Committee members. The committee will then select a winner and send notifications in late February to all those who entered a project submission.

The awards process is constructed to align with presenting the awards at the annual RP Conference. Please note: every award category may not be recognized annually and will be determined by the review committee based on nominations received. We hope that by providing the opportunity for a variety of contributions to be recognized, we will maximize the chances of individuals earning awards.

Award Winner Recognition

All 2026 award winners will be:

  • Posted on The RP Group’s website;

  • Celebrated in our RP Group communications; and

  • Recognized publicly during the awards ceremony at the RP Conference in April.

In addition, the Outstanding Project Award will be invited to present their work at:

  • A breakout session at the RP Conference in April; and

  • A follow-up statewide webinar in May.

Questions?

Please contact Adore Davidson, Marcell Gilmore, and Brad Trimble. IRPE PD Steering Committee Tri-Chairs.