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Kimberly Updegraff, Ph.D., & Catherine Solheim, Ph.D.
Co-chairs of the NCFR Fellows Committee
Greetings, NCFR Fellows! The Fellows Committee is seeking nominations for the 2025 Fellows Awards. Please help us by nominating members who have made significant contributions to the organization and the field. Below is a description of what it means to be awarded Fellow status in NCFR, the Fellows Award criteria for selection to Fellow status, and the procedure for submitting nominations. The Fellows Committee would greatly appreciate your assistance.
What Is Fellow Status in NCFR?
Fellow status in NCFR is an honor awarded to living members of NCFR on the basis of their outstanding contributions to Family Science. Nominations of all family researchers and professionals who have made contributions to the family field are encouraged. Among the recognized areas of contributions are scholarship, teaching, outreach, practice, and professional service, including service to NCFR. By definition, outstanding contributions are those that have broad impact on the field and are enduring over time.
What Are the Criteria for Fellow Status?
A. Nominees must have made outstanding contributions to the field and to NCFR as an organization. Satisfying a combination of these criteria is required. Examples of outstanding contributions include:
- Published, refereed scholarship that has shaped or reshaped the field of Family Science.
- A history of innovation in practice or outreach that has transformed the field, such as the development and implementation of novel or significant interventions or programs designed to promote healthy family relations.
- Recognition of teaching excellence through awards and mentoring.
- The development and implementation of innovative curricula for training professionals in the area of Family Science.
- The development and implementation of innovative social policy relevant to families.
- A history of innovation and publication about the methods and measurement strategies used in related Family Science arenas.
- Consistent and outstanding contributions to NCFR through leadership and service, such as editing/guest editing and serving on editorial boards of NCFR journals, holding leadership positions including in NCFR sections, or other similar contributions to NCFR.
B. Nominees must have at least 10 years of professional experience after the receipt of the appropriate graduate or professional degree.
C. Nominees must have held NCFR membership continuously for the past five years at the time of nomination.
What Is the Procedure for Nominations?
- Nominees must be nominated by another NCFR member.*
- Nominees must have the endorsement of two additional individuals, one of whom must be an NCFR member, describing the outstanding nature of the nominee’s contributions.
- In general, nominees should not be aware that they are being considered for fellow status. For this reason, the NCFR office will not contact candidates for fellow status at the time of their nominations.
- Individuals who were previously nominated for Fellow status, but not recommended by the Fellows Committee, are eligible to be nominated again after a three-year waiting period.
*Nominations from NCFR members involved in the nominee’s academic preparation (e.g., major adviser, administrative head of the program from which the nominee graduated) or who have possible conflicts of interest (e.g., partner or family member) will not be accepted.
For complete information, please see the NCFR Fellow Status Policies and Procedures, to include the nomination form and sample letter of endorsement.
Please send your nomination materials to NCFR at aliciajaworski@ncfr.org. The deadline for nominations is September 15, 2025. We are building this special recognition to further the legacy of outstanding members of NCFR. Let us hear from you! Thank you very much for your consideration. |
