E. Paul Torrance Award

NAGC's E. Paul Torrance Award

The purpose of the E. Paul Torrance Award is to acknowledge and reward significant contributions of individuals and groups whose work facilitates the enhancement and spread of creativity, especially among gifted children, and who are themselves creative thinkers. The award carries the name of the man who probably more than any other individual has promoted the values and behavior the Creativity Network wishes to honor.  Other past recipients of the E. Paul Torrance Award include:

Contact Information
Please contact Dr. Susan Keller-Mathers, International Center for Studies in Creativity at kellersm@buffalostate.edu or call 716-878-6222 with any questions about the information below.

Submission Deadline
To nominate someone for this award, you must be a member of NAGC's Creativity Network. All nominations by Creativity Network Members must be postmarked or e-mailed by April 16, 2009.  Please e-mail nominations to kellersm@buffalostate.edu or fax nominations to 716-878-4040. Please include your membership number or name to verify membership.

Confirmation of your submission will be via e-mail if you provide an email address.  You can also mail nominations to: E. Paul Torrance Award, ATTN: Dr. Susan Keller-Mathers, International Center for Studies in Creativity, 1300 Elmwood Avenue, Chase Hall 245, Buffalo, NY 14222.

Selection Guidelines
Any member of the Creativity Network may nominate any individual or group for the award.  The nominator does not have to know the nominee personally, but must secure the permission of the nominee to propose his or her name for the award.

• A brief statement of support expressing the nominee's qualifications for receiving the E. Paul Torrance Award must accompany each nomination (100 words or less), including the name and contact information of the person making the nomination.
• Include the name of the nominee and contact information.
• Nominations must be postmarked, faxed, or e-mailed by April 16, 2009.

Submission Guidelines
Membership in NAGC is not a necessary criterion for consideration of potential recipients of the award.  A person who has been previously nominated for the award but did not win the award may be re-nominated.

Voting on Nominees by Network Members
Creativity Network members receive ballots via e-mail (or regular mail if no e-mail is given) to vote on the nominees after the April 16 deadline. Votes are due to the chair of the award by May 30, 2009.

Announcement of the Winner
An announcement of the winner will be made, and a plaque will be presented, at Creativity Night during NAGC's Annual Convention in St. Louis, MO in November.  The winner will be notified by August 31, 2009, to allow sufficient time to make plans to attend the convention.  In the event that the recipient cannot attend the event, a representative will be selected to receive the award on behalf of the recipient.

2003 Winner Jerry Flack Discusses the History of the Torrance Award
"Back when the Creativity Division was no more than a small formative committee of seven or eight interested NAGC members, that group determined that one of the purpose of a creative study groups within the NAGC membership should be the annual recognition of individuals or organizations that support and enhance creativity and the creative development of youth.  The committee petitioned the NAGC Board of Directors for permission to give the annual award, appropriately named in honor of the person most people in our field acknowledge as the 'Father of Creativity.'  Approval was given to the new Creativity Division, nominations were sought, and the award was bestowed for the first time at the Orlando convention site in 1988."

Mission Statement of the Creativity Network
The Creativity Network believes that creativity is a basic and necessary function of healthy and productive individual and that the health and productivity of a society is reflective of the degree of creativity among its citizenry.  Therefore, it is the commitment of this Network to initiate, develop and implement practices and materials that will promote the creative potential of all persons.  Specifically, the Network will undertake activities that will:

• Promote the recognition and acceptance of, and the commitment to, creativity as a critical area of giftedness
• Promote research in the area of creativity, as well as creative approaches to research
• Provide practical strategies and activities to foster creativity
• Increase the public's awareness and acceptance of creative thinking as an essential skill