College scholarships created in honor of MVPs!

Questia, the premier online research and paper-writing tool for students, will establish one $2,500 scholarship in EACH of the three winning professors’ names, and the reigning MVPs will become part of the integral team that selects the scholarship recipients. What better way to honor an educator than to give back to education!

Nominating a professor is easy

Visit Questia on Facebook and tell us why your professor deserves the Most Valuable Professor title in just 400 characters or less.

“Valuable professors not only educate students on their subject of expertise, but provide students with tools and lessons they can apply to real life situations,” says Joe Miller, Chief Researcher at Questia.  “We probably don’t thank them enough. Nominating a special professor is a wonderful opportunity for students to elevate an unsung hero to MVP.”

Here’s what some students said during last year’s competition

About Professor Zafar Iqba and Professor Hank Rodkin at DePaul University:

“Zafar and Hank exemplify what it means to look out for the goals and futures of students. They taught me the value of building a network, helping others succeed, and connecting people with like interests for future success. Zafar works with the DePaul IME Program, and his influence on the members of that program shows for years beyond graduation.”

About Professor Neal Houze at Purdue University:

“I’m grateful to Professor Houze because his classes made me realize that I could graduate (I did in 1999) with a chemical engineering degree and use the problem solving techniques he taught to apply to anything (not just engineering) and that yes, indeed, engineers can be well-rounded and have a sense of humor.”

About Richard Castaldi  at San Francisco State University:

“To many that didn’t pass his class, he was the one thing that stood in the way from you and your degree. It was a serious class, it was a realistic class. He exposed us to what it would be like to work in the professional world. The fluff that got us through other classes didn’t fly with him. He pushed us to be polished and I will always be grateful to him for that.”

Submit your own nominations now!

Competition timeline

• Nominations will be accepted through April 15th.
• Voting will then be open to the public for a month starting April 16th to determine which of the professors will ultimately receive Questia’s National Title of MVP!
• The winners will be announced on May 21st. Follow it all on Facebook!

Rules

• All nominations will be vetted and only legitimate college professors will make the cut to the voting round.
• Invalid entries won’t be eligible for the $50 Visa gift card drawing.
• Once voting begins, you can vote for each finalist once – everyday! So get your friends and classmates to vote with you daily too!

In a Questia survey, we asked students who they turn to first for trustworthy academic advice, and more than half said it was a professor. In a separate survey where we asked who their college mentor is, the majority also said it was a professor. It seems as though professors are a go-to source for more than just homework questions. They are advisors, mentors and MVPs!

After all the nominations were collected from students, Questia’s reviewing panel then narrowed them down to our 10 finalists. Then, it was up to our fans to vote on the top 10! This was no easy choice, as we had a group of passionate and hard-working professors. In a survey, Questia asked students who they turn to first for trustworthy academic advice, and more than half said it was a professor. When asked who their college mentor is, the majority also said it was a professor. Professors are a go-to source for more than just homework questions—they are advisors, mentors and MVPs!

“Valuable professors not only educate students on their subject of expertise, but provide students with tools and lessons they can apply to real life situations,” says Joe Miller, Chief Researcher at Questia. “We probably don’t thank them enough. Nominating a special professor is a wonderful opportunity for students to elevate an unsung hero to MVP.”

When all the votes were in and tallied, our winner was clear! Congratulations again to Berry College’s Julia Corine Barnes for winning the first ever Most Valuable Professor Competition by Questia! In addition to receiving the title of Most Valuable Professor, we have created the Julia Corine Barnes Scholarship by Questia in which three students will each be awarded $2,500. We at Questia know that the best way to honor an educator is to give back to education.

Berry College student Marlon Blugh submitted the winning nomination:

“Through my first two years in college, I have struggled to find my place. An unfamiliar atmosphere coupled with career uncertainties troubled me, but Sra. Barnes was always there to offer me guidance. Her kindness and compassion were incomparable and her optimism gave me life. Sra. Barnes’ willingness to go the extra mile is why she is my new academic advisor and why she deserves the MVP award.”

A native Georgian, Barnes is finishing her second year as an Assistant Professor of Spanish at Berry College. Her research interests are in the contemporary Spanish novel (particularly by women) and women studies. “I’m very honored that Marlon thought so highly as to nominate me for MVP,” says Barnes. “I’m so pleased to have won.”

Thanks to all of Julia’s hard work and dedication to learning, students now have the Julia Corine Barnes Scholarship by Questia to look forward to! Coming soon in December, students will have the opportunity to apply to win one of three $2,500 scholarships. The three lucky scholarship winners will be selected by Julia herself. Stay tuned until December, when the scholarship criteria and application form will be made available. Congratulations again to Most Valuable Professor, Julia Corine Barnes, and a big thank you to instructors everywhere!