DaVinci Scholars Information

2026 DaVinci Institute Scholar Award

A $1,000 Award for Future Teachers

The DaVinci Scholar Award is designed to honor pre-service teachers whose academic accomplishments and service to the university are deemed most notable. Nominees will demonstrate the ability to integrate content into relevant applications through a service learning proposal. The proposal should exemplify scholarship, creativity, inventiveness, sound teaching techniques, and a keen sense of responsibility. Eligible applicants for this award must be in their final two years in a teacher preparation program.

Presidents or Provosts of each university may nominate up to two education majors for the award.

Selection will be based on four characteristics:

1) Academic GPA (20 percent)
2) Service Learning Proposal (see attached instructions) (50 percent)
3) Creativity (20 percent)
4) Letter of Recommendation (10 percent)

A complete application consists of four documents:

  1. Nomination Information Form (see below) from a representative of the Office of the University President or Provost
  2. Current transcript of nominee
  3. Nominee’s completed Service Learning Proposal (not to exceed five typewritten pages)
  4. Letter of recommendation (not to exceed one typewritten page) which provides specific examples and/or evidence of nominee’s distinguished qualities and activities.

Nomination Submission: The complete nomination packet should be submitted electronically no later than Friday, February 6, 2026 to davinci@osrhe.edu.

A notice of receipt will assure submission is complete. Award recipients will be identified by Monday, February 23, 2026.

All forms needed for reference and nomination for the 2026 DaVinci Scholar Award can be found below in a downloadable PDF format:

DaVinci Scholars Awards – Selection Criteria

DaVinci Scholars – Nomination Information Form

DaVinci Scholars – Service Learning Proposal Criteria

DaVinci Scholars – Application Scoring Rubric

The recipients will be honored at the DaVinci Awards Celebration on Friday, March 27, 2026 and will receive the first half of the award ($500) at the event. The second half of the award ($500) will be disbursed in October of their first year of teaching in an Oklahoma school.

Awardee attendance at the DaVinci Awards Celebration is required, and the Scholar’s home institution is expected to sponsor a table at the event to cover the awardees’ costs and help celebrate their achievement.