The 2025 Delphi Award Winners:
Florida Gulf Coast University and Montclair State University
Congratulations to our two winners, as well as finalists Community College of Baltimore County and the Mid-Atlantic Teaching Faculty Alliance.
Representatives from the two winning institutions will be honored at AAC&U's Annual Meeting in January 2026.
The 2024 Delphi Award Winners:
University of Massachusetts Amherst and
Michigan State University's College of Arts & Letters
Representatives from the two winning institutions were honored at AAC&U's Annual Meeting in January 2025, and participated in a special webinar "Institutional Transformation to Support VITAL Faculty" in March, 2025. Watch the webinar recording here.
The annual Delphi Award, now entering our eighth year, presents a $15,000 cash award to support VITAL faculty (also known as contingent, non-tenure track and/or adjunct) in pursuing strategic priorities such as student learning and community engagement.
The Delphi Award is generously sponsored by the TIAA Institute.
Read the Case Studies
Our Case Studies for 2024 Award winners University of Massachusetts Amherst and Michigan State University's College of Arts & Letters, along with finalists University of Delaware and San Jacinto College, are now available to download. These case studies highlight the innovative and important policies, programs and initiatives instituted by these universities in support of their contingent faculty. The new publications were written in collaboration between the Pullias Center and the featured campuses.
To access the case studies library for all Delphi Award winners and finalists since 2018, click here.
Six Years of Supporting Contingent Faculty with Cash Awards
Since 2018, the Pullias Center and AAC&U have presented a total of $180,000 to our winning institutions. Check out the winners and finalists, and read their award-winning Case Studies here:
Delphi Award Winners and Finalists, 2018-2024:
2024:
Winners: University of Massachusetts Amherst and Michigan State University's College of Arts & Letters
Finalists: University of Delaware and San Jacinto College
2023:
Winners: Loyola Marymount University & University of Arizona
Finalist: University of Massachusetts Amherst
2022:
Winners: Montgomery College & Dominican University of California
Finalists: University of Texas, San Antonio & University of California - AFT
2021:
Winners: University of Denver & Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Finalist: University of Michigan
2020:
Winners: Louisiana State University & Northcentral University
Finalists: Bay Path University & Lehigh Valley Consortium
2019
Winners: Penn State & Santa Monica College
Finalists: Montgomery College & UNC Charlotte
2018
Winners: California State University, Dominguez Hills & Harper College
Rewarding Scaleable, Institutionalized Support for Contingent Faculty
The purpose of the Delphi Award is to support policies, practices and programs that ameliorate the issues facing contingent, non-tenure-track and adjunct — also known as VITAL — faculty.
This is particularly important because faculty bring assets and benefits to campuses, departments and academic units but are often prevented from using their talents effectively to support students and contribute to institutional priorities aligned with improving campus(es) and contributing to the learning mission of higher education.
Partner
The American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) is a global membership organization dedicated to advancing the democratic purposes of higher education by promoting equity, innovation, and excellence in liberal education. Through our programs and events, publications and research, public advocacy, and campus-based projects, AAC&U serves as a catalyst and facilitator for innovations that improve educational quality and equity and that support the success of all students. In addition to accredited public and private, two-year and four-year colleges and universities, and state higher education systems and agencies throughout the United States, our membership includes degree-granting higher education institutions around the world as well as other organizations and individuals. To learn more, visit www.aacu.org.
Funder
The TIAA Institute helps advance the ways individuals and institutions plan for financial security and organizational effectiveness. The Institute conducts in-depth research, provides access to a network of thought leaders, and enables those it serves to anticipate trends, plan future strategies and maximize opportunities for success. To learn more about our work and engage with our community of thought leaders, please visit our website at www.tiaainstitute.org and follow us on Twitter at @TIAAInstitute.
