Metcalf Awards

The Metcalf Awards were established in 1973 by an endowment gift from the late Dr. Arthur G. B. Metcalf (1908–1997), an alumnus, faculty member, generous benefactor, trustee of Boston University, and chair of the Board of Trustees from 1976 to 1994.

The Metcalf Cup and Prize is the highest faculty honor of Boston University. The award recognizes and encourages outstanding teaching in the context of a research institution and expresses the University’s deepest purpose. The Metcalf Cup and $10,000 Prize and gold medal is presented annually at Commencement. Each year, candidates are nominated by students, faculty, or alumni, and the finalists are selected by a screening committee of faculty and students. Over the course of the year, the committee solicits and reviews supporting materials from the candidates and their department chairs. The members of the committee visit the classes of the finalists and, in the spring, present their recommendations to the University’s President. “The purpose of the prize,” Dr. Metcalf stated at the time of its creation, “is to establish a systematic procedure for the review of the quality of teaching and the identification and advancement of those members of the faculty who excel as teachers, of which this cup is symbolic.”

The Metcalf Award for Excellence in Teaching is given annually to one or more of the finalists in the competition for the Metcalf Cup and Prize. Each winner of the Metcalf Award receives $5,000 and a silver medal. Over the decades, Metcalf recipients have represented an array of disciplines spanning the arts and humanities, sciences, business, education, mathematics, health fields, communication, and engineering. They have been accomplished inventors, authors, artists, and explorers, adept at preparing students for a lifetime of inquiry and achievement in their careers and communities. While their fields vary, all have demonstrated a commitment to excellence in their classrooms, laboratories, and studios. And all exemplify the extraordinary talent Boston University is proud to feature on its campuses.