2026 APCCMPD Awards 
Call for Submissions

NOMINATION DEADLINE:  November 3, 2025

Purpose

The APCCMPD Emerging Educator Award (EEA) honors one or two individuals who are up-and-coming medical educators demonstrating exceptional promise and excellence in educational values, teaching abilities, and dedication to advancing medical education in pulmonary, critical care, and pulmonary critical care medicine. The awardee(s) excel in delivering and promoting medical education through various means at the local and regional levels, including innovative teaching methods, curriculum development, educational program improvement, mentorship of learners, and contributions to educational excellence.

This award recognizes the diverse pathways through which emerging educators can demonstrate outstanding contributions to medical education across all practice settings. Whether through academic scholarship, clinical teaching innovation, curriculum design, educational program development, or transformational approaches to learner engagement, the award celebrates educators who show exceptional potential for future educational leadership.

The EEA honors early career medical educators who, within 1-5 years of fellowship training, have already begun to distinguish themselves through their commitment to educational excellence, their impact on learner development, and their potential to influence the future of medical education in their specialty. The award recognizes that outstanding educational contributions emerge from community-based programs, university-based programs, and community-based/university affiliated environments alike.

Recipients demonstrate not only teaching excellence appropriate for their career stage, but also the vision, innovation, and dedication that position them as future leaders in medical education.

Eligibility and Award Criteria

A recipient of the national award will be:

• a pulmonary, critical care or sleep clinician, at the level of Instructor or Assistant Professor (or equivalent), within 1-5 years of fellowship, who spends a majority of their time serving as a clinician-educator.
• a clinician-educator whose major portion of time is spent in fellow-level education.
• recognized by Fellows-in-Training and by their peers as having made substantial contributions to the field of medical education through various means at the local and regional levels. Nominations must reflect excellence in this area above all else.
  
• a Program Director, Associate Program Director, or faculty within an APCCMPD member fellowship program.
• Contributions and engagement with the APCCMPD are not required but will be viewed favorably.

A recipient may not be:

• a current member of the APCCMPD Board of Directors (BOD).

Nomination Process

Nominees for the EEA may be self-nominated or nominated by a peer. Individuals who wish to nominate an emerging educator should first obtain the approval of the prospective nominee. 

• The EEA Nomination Form will require the following:

• One PDF File, which contains:
1. A Cover Page (Download)
2. A brief description of the nominee’s impact as a clinician-educator in pulmonary, critical care, and/or pulmonary critical care fellowship training. The applicant's statement should align with the award purpose and attributes outlined in the scoring criteria.
3. Two (2) Letters of Support that should describe how the nominee has demonstrated excellence as an educator of Fellows-in-Training within pulmonary, critical care, and/or pulmonary critical care fellowship training. 
4. The nominee’s current CV.
5. A .jpg-format color photograph of the nominee (head and shoulders). Headshots will be used in the APCCMPD 2025 Annual Conference Awards Program. Submitted headshots will not be shared with the Awards Selection Committee (ASC). 
6. Confirmation that, if selected, awardee will attend the upcoming APCCMPD 2026 Annual Conference to be held March 4 - 6 in Scottsdale, AZ. 

Selection Process

• The Educator and Funding Awards Review Committee will review all nominees. The committee will develop a ranked slate of the top qualifiers, based on the eligibility criteria. The Educator and Funding Awards Review Committee Chair will present the ranked slate of the top qualifiers to the APCCMPD BOD for voting.
• One or two nominees will be awarded annually.
• Nominees not awarded the EEA will be reconsidered for a subsequent year, as long as the nominee is eligible. Nominees will be given the opportunity to update their nomination packet annually.
• In years when no EEA candidates are nominated, the APCCMPD BOD reserves the right to award an individual whom they determine meets the Eligibility and Review Criteria, without submission of two Letters of Support.

Scoring Criteria

Nominees will be rated on a scale of 0-5 in each area below. The candidates will be ranked using the sum of the three scored criteria. The total score and the score for the individual criterion will be presented to the Award Review Committee.

Professional Development and Engagement in the Field

• Reviewers will provide an overall impact score to reflect their assessment of the candidate’s alignment with the award's purpose. The award is intended to recognize individuals who have dedicated a significant portion of their professional lives to improving the practice and profession of pulmonary, critical care, and pulmonary/critical care medicine through education. The score will be based on the candidate's dedication to education, which should include excellence in education beyond the local level appropriate for their career stage. The candidate's contributions should be widely recognized and may include teaching, directing, mentoring, writing, and speaking, curriculum development, educational innovation, and program improvement. This can be realized through noteworthy accomplishments beyond the level of their peers within their career stage.
• This criterion evaluates Professional development, engagement, and recognition at various levels, from institutional to national impact, focusing on educational contributions, teaching excellence, curriculum development, program innovation and involvement in medical education professional committees or organizations, and has demonstrated notable accomplishments on the field beyond the level of their peers appropriate for early career educators

       Early Career Mentorship and Educational Leadership

• Reviewers will assign a score reflecting the candidate's emerging leadership and mentorship in pulmonary, CCM, and PCCM education. The candidate will be scored on their early contributions to mentoring others and educational leadership within their career stage. This dedication can be demonstrated through offering guidance and support to learners, participating in educational initiatives, and showing potential for future educational leadership.
• This criterion evaluates the candidate's emerging career impact and early mentorship contributions within the field of pulmonary/critical care medicine education, considering dedication to education and developing mentorship skills appropriate for their career stage.

       APCCMPD Engagement

• Reviewers will assign a score reflecting the candidate’s contributions to the advancement of the field through their engagement with the Association of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Program Directors (APCCMPD). This may include participation on APCCMPD committees, taskforces, and workgroups; creation of content such as blogs, podcasts, courses, presentations, posters, abstracts, etc.; application to APCCMPD Awards; and attendance at the APCCMPD Annual Conference or other courses.
• This criterion evaluates the candidate's engagement with the APCCMPD based on their involvement in various activities such as attending events, participating in committees or workgroups, creating content, applying for awards, and demonstrating leadership. 

Awardee Recognition

The APCCMPD will present the EEA recipient with a plaque at the APCCMPD 2026 Annual Conference. The APCCMPD will also recognize the awardee (and all nominees) in its quarterly newsletter, on the APCCMPD website, and in the APCCMPD 2026 Annual Conference Awards Program.

Submission Information