The $30,000 Gold Shield Faculty Prize, an award for academic excellence, was created by the Gold Shield Alumnae of UCLA in celebration of their fiftieth anniversary in 1986. The prize is funded by an endowment of $250,000 raised by Gold Shield for this purpose, which has grown to over $450,000. Guidelines provide that the prize “recognize and reward UCLA faculty members who have demonstrated extraordinary accomplishment in teaching and in research or creative activity...and who have made a significant contribution to undergraduate education.” Preference for recipients is given to faculty members in mid-career, who do not often receive the extra professional incentives available to distinguished senior faculty.
The Gold Shield Faculty Prize is awarded to each recipient for scholarly use. The awardee is selected every year by a committee of peers appointed by the Academic Senate. Student and Gold Shield representatives are included. Recipients must come from fields that have undergraduate programs at UCLA.
1986-88
- Michael E. Jung (Chemistry and Biochemistry)
1988-90
- Patricia M. Greenfield (Psychology)
1990-92
- Jeffrey C. Alexander (Sociology)
1992-94
- J. William Schopf (Earth and Space Sciences)
1994-96
- Albert R. Braunmuller (English)
1996-98
- Peter M. Narins (Physiological Science)
1998-00
- Robert B. Goldberg (Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology)
2000-02
- Utpal Banerjee (Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology)
2002-04
- Richard B. Kaner (Chemistry and Biochemistry)
2004-06
- Andrea M. Ghez (Physics and Astronomy)
2006-08
- Robert N. Watson (English)
2007-09
- William J. Kaiser (Electrical Engineering)
2008-10
- Alicia Gaspar de Alba (Chicana and Chicano Studies)
2009-11
- Robin L. Garrell (Chemistry and Biochemistry)
2010-12
- David H. Gere (World Arts and Cultures)
2011-13
- Matthew D. Lieberman (Psychology)
2012-14
- Kevin B. Terraciano (History)
2013-15
- Luisa M. Iruela-Arispe (Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology)
2014-16
- Brenda Stevenson (History)
2015-17
- Neil K. Garg (Chemistry and Biochemistry)
2016-18
- Charlene Villaseñor Black (Art History)
2017-19
- Daniel T. Blumstein (Ecology and Evolutionary Biology)
2018-20
- Daniel M.T. Fessler (Anthropology)
2019-21
- Paul H. Barber (Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Environment and Sustainability)
2020-22
- Janet M. O’Shea (World Arts and Cultures/Dance)
