Quint Studer Gratitude Prize for Teaching Excellence

The Quint Studer Gratitude Prize for Teaching Excellence was established to honor Quint Studer - healthcare executive and entrepreneur; teacher, coach, and mentor; and community builder and humanitarian - for his many years of service to the fields of healthcare management and leadership and healthcare management and policy education; and for his service to, and love for, AUPHA.

The $1,250 Quint Studer Gratitude Prize for Teaching Excellence recognizes individuals from AUPHA member programs for outstanding teaching and mentoring; leadership in educational programming and pedagogy; and dissemination of innovative and promising practices for teaching and mentoring, and course and curriculum development. 

A wide variety of achievements and contributions to teaching and mentoring in the field may be recognized by the award including:

• Excellence in teaching and pedagogical approaches and practices
• Contribution to the field through scholarship and publications focused on teaching and pedagogy, and course and curriculum development
• Excellence in advising, mentoring, and coaching
• Influence on healthcare management education through curriculum development and design
• Implementation of teaching and education partnerships within institutions of higher learning and with practice communities
• Exceptional service to AUPHA and the field of healthcare management education, particularly with regard to curricular content and competency development; approaches to teaching and learning methods, and student assessment methods; and quality improvement in healthcare management education and policy education
• Other efforts to enhance the quality of healthcare management education and policy teaching and mentoring specifically, and educational programming more generally

Nominations may be made by individuals from AUPHA member programs, as well as affiliate or individual members of the Association. The nominee must be a faculty member at an AUPHA Member program. Nominations must be submitted electronically through the AUPHA website. The online form requests the nominee’s curriculum vitae along with two letters of nomination describing:

• Why the individual is being nominated for the Prize.
• Nominee’s outstanding contributions to teaching in the field of healthcare management education and policy education.
• How the nominee has exhibited leadership for teaching pedagogy and practice improvement.
• How the nominee has enriched their institution and fellow faculty through excellent teaching and mentoring.
• How the nominee has enriched the lives of their students and alumni through excellent teaching and mentoring.
• How the nominee has enriched teaching and mentoring across the field of healthcare management education and policy education.

At least one of the two letters must be from another member of AUPHA.

Individuals may be nominated from year to year as long as they continue to meet the criteria for the Prize.

Contact Jenn Munt, Senior Director of Education and Professional Development, at jmunt@aupha.org for more information.

Nominations for the 2026 Prize have closed. Information about the 2027 Prize will be released in late 2026.

2026        Brenda Helen Sheingold, PhD, FNAP, RN
                George Mason University

2025        Chris Calkins, PhD, MPA
                Pennsylvania State University

2024        Sue Boren, PhD, MHA, FACMI, FAMIA
                University of Missouri

2023        Amy Yarbrough Landry, PhD
                University of Alabama at Birmingham 

2022        Karen A. Wager, DBA
                Medical University of South Carolina