The Student Volunteer Awards Celebration is a yearly event, usually held the first Saturday in April or final Saturday in March. This event offers the opportunity to recognize and thank the student leaders and organization volunteers for their dedication, hard work and commitment. There are numerous organization and individual awards presented at the celebration. This year marks the 20th Student Volunteer Awards Celebration at Black Hills State University.

See Award Application Tab above for list of individual awards.

Dates and Tentative Deadlines - 2012

• January 18 - Nominations may be submitted - Nomination Form
• February 1 - Nominations are due
• February 6 -  Letters sent out to nominees, inviting them to complete applications
• February 24 - Award applications due (No late applications accepted)
• March 14 - Nominations for Outstanding Organization Members accepted
• March 23 - Outstanding Organization Member awards due

Saturday, April 14 - Student Volunteer Awards Celebration

These dates are tentative but give a general idea of the time frames we are looking at for planning purposes. Please keep these dates in mind and refer to this sheet while working on the requested forms. If you have questions, please email susie.leahy@bhsu.edu  or call 642-6378. Click on the list of student volunteer awards to view an explanation of each award. Read the explanations and then complete a nomination form. You may complete as many nomination forms as you see fit.  

You may submit your nominee/s by clicking on the link above or by clicking on the nomination form at the top of the page of the list of student volunteer awards. Use this form for both your organization and individual nominations. 

Student Volunteer Nomination Form Link

You must be nominated for an award before completing the application forms you see below.  You will be notified in an e-mail letter from the office of Student Engagement if you have been nominated.

Individual Awards:  

• OUTSTANDING STUDENT ORGANIZATION ADVISOR (one award)
  Awarded to a volunteer advisor who contributed to the organization in the following ways: participated in meetings, consulted with organization members and officers, allowed the organization to set goals and make decisions, encouraged and supported officers and members.  Award consideration is for accomplishments from current fall semester to the present time.
• OUTSTANDING RESIDENCE LIFE INVOLVEMENT (one award)
  Awarded to a residence hall student who demonstrated involvement in residence hall activities and programs, supported the goals and purposes of residence hall living, demonstrated academic achievement and contributed to the quality of life in the residence hall community during the current fall semester to the present time. The recipient should not be a paid Residence Life staff member.
• OUTSTANDING LEADERSHIP IN RESIDENCE LIFE (one award)
  Awarded to a residence hall student who has gone above the call of duty to serve the students and has made a positive impact through his/her leadership in the residence halls during the current fall semester to the present time.
• OUTSTANDING FRESHMAN (one award)
  Awarded to an individual with freshman classification who is actively involved in at least one student organization and participated in campus activities and programs outside the classroom.  The recipient must have demonstrated enthusiasm, cooperation, a willingness to learn, and a positive outlook during the current fall semester to the present time.
• VICE PRESIDENT FOR STUDENT LIFE RISING STAR (one award)
  Awarded to the person who holds a leadership position and has demonstrated exemplary leadership skills. The recipient must be a sophomore at BHSU with 32-63 credits. The recipient exhibits the ability to successfully work with the organizations, leads the organization with innovative ideas, delegates responsibilities and provides direction to members and officers.
• OUTSTANDING VOLUNTEER (one award)
  Awarded to the person who has consistently donated his/her time and effort to the university and its the greater community.  The recipient demonstrates enthusiasm for the organization and faithfully contributes time and talents for the betterment of the organization(s) and and faithfully contributes their time, energy and talents for the betterment of their organization(s), the BHSU camps and community.  Award consideration is for accomplishments during the current fall semester to the present time.
• OUTSTANDING STUDENT LEADER (one award)
  Awarded to the person who holds a leadership position and has demonstrated exemplary leadership skills.  The recipient exhibits the ability to successfully work with the organization, leads the organization with innovative ideas, delegates responsibilities, provides direction to members and officers, and is familiar with university policies and regulations.  Award consideration is for accomplishments from the current fall semester to the present time.
• EXCELLENCE IN LEADERSHIP (numerous awards may be given)
  Awarded to individual students who have best demonstrated involvement on campus throughout their enrollment at BHSU.  Eligible candidates must have senior status and must have a minimum 3.25 cumulative GPA.  The recipient will demonstrate extensive involvement in campus and community activities; personal integrity and exemplary character; a commitment to helping other students by encouraging, supporting and nurturing their involvement; and academic achievement.  This is the only award that evaluates the candidate’s activities throughout their college career.  Nominees must also include a letter of reference with their application.  

Organization and Program Awards:

• OUTSTANDING NEW STUDENT ORGANIZATION (one award)
  Awarded to a new organization that has successfully recruited members, held activities and regular meetings, and is financially responsible.  To be eligible, the recipient must have received university recognition during the previous spring or fall semesters.  
• OUTSTANDING STUDENT ORGANIZATION (one award)
  Awarded to a BHSU recognized student organization that has been successful in the following areas: membership retention, meeting attendance, social and educational activities, campus contributions, fundraising and/or community service projects.  Accomplishments should have occurred between the previous calendar year.
• OUTSTANDING PROGRAM/ACTIVITY (several potential awards)
  Awarded to student organizations that sponsored a specific activity or program that exhibited creativity, encouraged student growth and  development, and contributed to quality of student life on campus.  The event should have occurred the previous calendar year.  Numerous awards will be given such as, community focus, campus focus, entertainment focus, cultural focus, etc.  
• MOST IMPROVED STUDENT ORGANIZATION (one award)
  Awarded to the organization that has demonstrated the greatest improvements in the past year, occurring during the previous calendar year.  Award consideration will include membership recruitment and retention, programs and activities, organizational purpose and contributions to campus life.   
• OUTSTANDING COMMUNITY SERVICE PROJECT (several potential awards)
  Awarded to a student organization for sponsoring a community service project that benefited someone in need and/or a service organization that supported and encouraged student commitment to volunteering and has a long-lasting value and impact.  The event should have occurred during the previous calendar year.  
• OUTSTANDING STUDENT ORGANIZATION MEMBER AWARDS
  (one award for each organization)
  Awarded to an individual nominated by his/her organization for outstanding service to the group. Letters will be sent to organizations in mid February asking for the individual the organization would like to nominate as their outstanding member for that year.  

Board of Regents Awards:

THERE ARE NO SEPARATE APPLICATIONS FOR THE BOARD OF REGENTS AWARDS. These award recipients are chosen based on the applications submitted from the organization awards listed above.

• BOARD OF REGENTS AWARD FOR ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE (one award)
  The purpose of this award is to recognize student organizations for outstanding contributions to the academic environment at their  university or to the academic performance of students.   Contributions should have occurred during the previous calendar year.
• BOARD OF REGENTS AWARD FOR ORGANIZATIONAL LEADERSHIP (one award)
  The purpose of this award is to recognize student organizations for outstanding activities that provide effective student or community leadership.  The activities should have occurred during the previous calendar year.   
• BOARD OF REGENTS AWARD FOR COMMUNITY SERVICE (one award)
  The purpose of this award is to recognize student organizations community service external to the campus.  The community service projects or activities should have occurred during the previous calendar year.  

Email letters will be sent to the nominees and notification will be posted on the @BH newsletter in late January/early February when the application forms are available online to complete.