In 2019, Jay Akridge, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs and diversity, charged the Purdue Teaching Academy with defining teaching excellence and creating a cultural shift to ensure that teaching excellence is understood, supported and valued by the Purdue faculty, instructors and campus community.

The Teaching Academy conducted an intentional and deliberate research study that led to the Framework for Teaching Excellence. This Framework describes the elements of Exemplar, Enthusiast, Educator, Experimenter, and Explorer, and provides an operational framework for teaching excellence at Purdue West Lafayette.  

In 2022 the Teaching Academy launched the accompanying Guide for Developing and Documenting Teaching Excellence that serves as a tool for supporting the implementation of the five elements of the Framework. A goal of the guide is to help instructors recognize their strengths and expand their skills within and across the Framework elements.  

The Teaching Academy is a community of Purdue West Lafayette faculty who have demonstrated excellence in the disciplines of teaching, learning, and educational scholarship. Together with the Office of the Provost and the Center for Instructional Excellence, the Teaching Academy sponsors many programs and activities to foster educational creativity, innovation, and effectiveness.  

To learn more about the Framework for Teaching Excellence and Guide for Developing and Documenting Teaching Excellence, click HERE. Questions can be sent to Dr. Kimberly Illingworth, at illingworth@purdue.edu.