GW Inventor of the Year Awards
Call for Nominations
The Office for Faculty Affairs will begin accepting nominations on Monday, October 21st, 2024 for the 2025 Faculty Honors Ceremony. Individuals nominating a faculty member for these awards should submit the nomination form using InfoReady.
- Nomination form due: Friday, December 6th, 2024
- Department endorsement of nominees due: Sunday, December 22nd, 2024
- Nomination package due: Friday, January 17th, 2025
Under the leadership of the Technology Commercialization Office (TCO) within Faculty Affairs, these awards recognize a regular, full-time faculty member’s outstanding impact on society through transferring technology from academia to the commercial sector. It is presented annually along with a $1,000 prize to be used for professional development. It provides a tangible symbol of the George Washington University’s commitment to translating research outputs to useful products that impact lives.
Faculty may nominate a regular, full-time faculty member for these. The University will honor the recipient at the annual Faculty Honors Ceremony.
Award Criteria
GW Inventor of the Year Award
This award is presented annually to a member of the regular, full-time faculty that has made significant impact on society by inventing new technology and working with the TCO to patent, license, and transfer the technology to a business partner. The committee will consider:
- The nominee’s invention(s) and its impact or value to the field and society;
- The nominee’s contribution to the University and the field; and
- The nominee’s innovative creativity and commitment to impact as demonstrated by the invention(s) itself and commercialization history.
Early Career GW Inventor of the Year Award
This award has the same criteria as the GW Inventor of the Year, but Early Career nominees must either have an assistant professor position, or have received a terminal degree within the 10 years prior to the submission package due date.
Selection Process
The GW Inventor of the Year Awards are nominated by faculty, endorsed by the TCO, and then voted upon by committee.
The process:
- Nominators must complete the nomination form.
- To endorse the nomination, the department will be asked to submit the following supporting materials electronically via InfoReady.
- GW Inventor of the Year Award - Cover Sheet
- Letter in support from nominator;
- Letters in support from department chair and vice or associate dean;
- Statement of endorsement by TCO;
- In consultation with TCO, a list of licensees of nominee’s patents, including a short description of the significant patents licensed, development status (on sale, scaling up, clinical trial, prototyping, proof of concept), and nominee’s relationship (Founder, CXO, advisory board member, consultant);
- In consultation with TCO, a list of granted and pending US patents and patent applications;
- A statement of impact on public welfare and economic impact (jobs created, lives touched) (200 words maximum);
- Optional external (outside of GW) support letters (e.g., patent licensee) (two maximum); and
- Optional citations to publications related to inventions.
The submission package should be a maximum of 25 pages, not including the required cover sheet and nominee's CV; materials beyond the 25-page limit will not be considered.
More information on how to submit via InfoReady will be sent after the call for nominations has closed.
Deadlines
- Nominations Due: 12/6/2024
- Department Endorsement of Nominee Due: 12/22/2024
- Submission Package Due: 1/17/2025
For more information about criteria and how to apply, please direct inquiries to [email protected].
2024 Inventor of the Year Award Winner Video