Outstanding Maverick Awards

Eligibility Criteria for Staff Members (Individual Contributors)

• Current UTA Classified and Administrative & Professional staff members who do not have direct reports and are benefits eligible.
• Benefits eligible employees (appointed 50% to 100%) who have been employed for a minimum of six months as of September 1, 2025.
• Nominees must be in good standing with a performance evaluation of "meets expectation" or higher.
• Previous honorees who received an award within the past five years are ineligible to apply. Only those who received an award more than five years ago are eligible.
• Self-nominations will not be accepted.

Written Nomination Must Reference One of UTA’s Shared Values Below

Collaboration

Recognizes an employee who demonstrates cooperation and teamwork, offers support, shares knowledge and encourages others to accomplish a shared goal or innovative solutions. The nomination should highlight how the employee collaborates well with others and forms positive partnerships across the University or the community.

Engagement

Recognizes an employee who creates and supports a respectful, welcoming and supportive workplace environment. The nomination should highlight how the employee, through engagement, contributes to creating an atmosphere that guarantees a feeling of connection and community.

Excellence

Recognizes an employee who has made a significant impact through exceptional performance and service. The nomination should highlight how the employee delivers excellent service, finds ways to exceed the customer’s expressed and implied needs, and also approaches all actions with high standards and quality.

Innovation

Recognizes an employee who implements a new approach or solution using creative and innovative solutions to enhance team performance, future outcomes or the capacity to serve others. The nomination should highlight how the employee’s forward-thinking solution impacts a change in direction, policy, program, process or approach.

Integrity

Recognizes a staff member who demonstrates honesty, accountability, transparency and ethical behavior. The nomination should highlight how the employee promotes ethical behavior and decision-making, is a good steward of university resources and creates an atmosphere of openness, encouraging others to feel that any concern will be heard.

Excellence in Leadership

This award recognizes the outstanding contributions of people leaders who manage teams. The focus is on leaders who:

• Serve as a role model for others and demonstrates a high level of professionalism.
• Inspire others to work collaboratively and creatively.
• Lead a team to achieve results.
• Effectively promotes the University's mission, vision, values and strategic plan.
• Actively involved in coaching, mentorship and development of others.
• Demonstrates transformative and innovative leadership skills by empowering groups and fostering effective change.
• Develops and maintains positive relationships with students, faculty and staff members across campus to design, deliver and drive engagement.
• Promote a work environment that is respectful and supportive.

Eligibility for Excellence in Leadership

• Current UTA people leaders with at least three full-time direct reports.
• Benefits-eligible employees (appointed 50% to 100%) who have been employed for a minimum of six months as of September 1, 2025.
• Previous honorees who received an award within the past five years are ineligible to apply. Only those who received an award more than five years ago are eligible.
• Self-nominations will not be accepted.

Teamwork (Only for a Team Submission of a team with 3-6 individuals)

This award recognizes the unique, distinct and outstanding contributions of employees working as a team (either within a department or cross-divisionally), beyond normal operations. Here are examples of superb teams:

• Works effectively to successfully accomplish a task or meet a goal advancing departmental goals and/or UTA mission.
• Builds effective collaborative relationships across different groups of departments within the organization to define and solve problems or reach agreements on a course of action while considering multiple perspectives striving to create outstanding projects that contribute to a better UTA.
• Creates a team environment that promotes communication, trust, cooperation and respect for differences, meeting strategic and operational goals through an extraordinary team effort.
• Contributes to a group effort which has a significant impact on departmental goals, fostering cooperation, collaboration and open communication. Places team goals above personal goals while achieving a distinctive result or product (teams may constitute an entire department and can be cross-functional).

Eligibility for Teamwork

• Current UTA Classified and Administrative & Professional staff members who do not have direct reports and are benefits eligible.
• All nominees must be in good standing with a performance evaluation of "meets expectation" or higher.
• Previous teams who received an award within the past five years are ineligible to win. Only those who received an award more than five years ago are eligible. If an individual on the team has won, this will not make the team ineligible to win.
• Self-nominations will not be accepted