Application Instructions – National Leader of the Year Awards

• Gen. Russell E. Dougherty National Leader of the Year
• National Leader of the Year – Academics and Research
• National Leader of the Year – Athletics
• National Leader of the Year – Communications
• National Leader of the Year – Creative and Performing Arts
• National Leader of the Year – Service to Campus and Community

When an applicant clicks on an award application link, they will be prompted to either log in to an existing Kaleidoscope account or create a new account. Kaleidoscope allows applicants to stop and save their progress, so the application does not need to be completed in one sitting. However, an application must not be left in draft mode – only applications that are submitted prior to the due date will be considered.

Applicants are encouraged to work on their written statements in a word processing software that allows them to check spelling and grammar before copying and pasting into the application. This also provides a backup in case the application has technical issues while working on the materials. Applicants should also consider having others read their drafts before submission. Poorly constructed essays, or those rife with errors, will be given lower scores.

Each award has its own application, which asks for the following information:

• OΔK information (circle and year of initiation)
• Contact information
• Demographic information (optional)
• Educational background
• Completion of written statements
• Document upload: resume and unofficial transcript (required); portfolio and links to other work (optional)
• Contact information for one reference

Applications are not considered complete until the student submits all required elements and the reference completes their recommendation. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed. The reference will receive emails from Kaleidoscope reminding them to complete the recommendation, but the primary responsibility falls on the applicant to check in with the reference to ensure this is completed. Applicants will be able to view whether their reference has completed the recommendation by logging back into Kaleidoscope.

All applications include the following prompts with a limit of 500 words each:

• Tell us about yourself, your background, and your values.
• How have you represented the O∆K values of collaboration, inclusivity, integrity, scholarship, and service in your collegiate leadership experiences?

Then, depending on the award category, an applicant will see the following additional prompts:

• Gen. Russell E. Dougherty National Leader of the Year Prompts
  • Describe your most significant and impactful collegiate leadership experiences. 
  • Describe the changes or impact within your campus due to your efforts as a collegiate leader. How have you improved the collegiate experience for your fellow students, both present and future? 
• National Leader of the Year Pillar Awards Prompts
  • Describe your most significant and impactful collegiate leadership experiences within this pillar and how these experiences have shaped your leadership philosophy. 
  • Describe the impact you have made within this pillar on your campus. How has your leadership improved the experience of other students and created change within the campus community?

The committee asks different questions for each award to gather information specific to that award, which helps in the selection process. These statements should not be recitations of the applicant’s resume, but instead a description of the most relevant and meaningful leadership experiences during the candidate’s time in college and how their efforts contributed to positive change for their peers and the institution. Applicants may include details on non-collegiate leadership experiences if they feel it strengthens their application or would be particularly relevant to the award they seek. An example would be starting their own non-profit organization, which is not tied to their university; however, high school leadership experience will not be considered.

When applying for a pillar-specific award, candidates are encouraged to focus their written statements on leadership experiences directly relevant to that pillar. For example, being the captain of an intramural team may have been a significant experience for an applicant but would not necessarily be relevant when applying for the Academics and Research or Creative and Performing Arts awards.

• Resume – Applicants are strongly encouraged to utilize their on-campus career services department when developing a resume to submit for these awards to receive assistance and critiques. The resume should primarily highlight collegiate leadership and academic experiences relevant to the awards sought. Work experience and internships may also be included. Any high school information and experience should be omitted. The same resume may be submitted for multiple award applications. Only PDFs are accepted. 
• Transcript – The transcript should show the applicant’s cumulative GPA at the time of application. Unofficial transcripts are accepted. Only PDFs are accepted. 
• Portfolio – Applicants have the option of adding links to their work or to an online portfolio if they would like the committee to view other materials relevant to the award sought.

Applicants supply the name and email address of a reference, who will then receive an email from Kaleidoscope asking them to submit their recommendation online. Please note that each award application requires a reference. For example, if a member applies for two awards, two (2) references would be required.

Applicants should be thoughtful about whom to ask to be a reference for each award. The recommendation should be tailored to the award so the National Awards Committee can understand the applicant’s leadership experience in this area. The same person can be a reference for multiple categories, but the submission of the exact same recommendation twice is strongly discouraged. It is good professional practice to have a discussion with your intended reference(s) to ensure that 1) they are willing to speak well of you and 2) they understand the requirements for this process.

Examples of a relevant reference for each award are as follows:

• Gen. Russell E. Dougherty National Leader of the Year
  • A faculty or staff advisor who has worked with the applicant in multiple leadership roles or a dean of students who is aware of the applicant’s leadership impact across multiple endeavors.
• National Leader of the Year – Academics and Research
  • A faculty member with whom the applicant has conducted research or published or a staff member/supervisor from an on-campus tutoring facility.
• National Leader of the Year – Service to Campus and Community
  • An advisor from a student organization or a supervisor from a volunteer experience.
• National Leader of the Year – Creative and Performing Arts
  • A faculty member with whom the applicant worked on creative endeavors or an advisor from an arts-related student organization.
• National Leader of the Year – Communications
  • A supervisor from a campus publication or an advisor who can speak to the applicant’s marketing or advocacy efforts.
• National Leader of the Year – Athletics
  • A coach, or a staff member the applicant worked with on a student-athlete advisory board.