Rebecca Blank Professorship and Hanns Kuttner Professorship

The Rebecca Blank Professorship and Hanns Kuttner Professorship, two separate awards, were created to honor the leadership and service of former Chancellor Rebecca Blank and her husband, Hanns Kuttner. The awards are for recently tenured UW–Madison faculty members who have built an outstanding record of teaching, research, and service. To be eligible, faculty must have received tenure within the last four years.

Annual award allocations are $22,500 for research support. Recipients on 9-month appointments may use the research funds for summer salary support, if so desired. Additionally, the recipients school or college will receive an annual allocation of $22,500 to be spent on salary coverage. Appointments are for five years and are renewable only in unusual circumstances. Funding to support the appointments is held at the UW Foundation.

These professorships are managed by the Office of the Provost.

Nomination Criteria

Strong nominations will address:

1. Demonstrated excellence in teaching, research, and service
2. Faculty eligible for these professorships must have received tenure within the last four years

Nomination Process

When there is an available Rebecca Blank or Hanns Kuttner Professorship, the Office of the Provost notifies the Dean’s Office of the school or college to initiate the selection process.

The Dean’s Office submits nominations to the Office of the Provost.

1. Create a single PDF file for each nomination that includes:
   • A cover page with the nominee’s name, department, school or college, and tenure date
   • Dean’s cover memo stating support for the nomination and ranking, if more than one person is being nominated
   • The nomination from the department, school, college, or division (two to three pages) that explains how the nominee was selected and highlights the major features of their work
   • The nominee’s curriculum vitae
   • Any additional relevant materials
   • Publications should not be submitted.  If viewable online, a listing of where to find electronic versions may be included.
2. Name the PDF file “NomineeLastName-SchoolCollegeDivision-DateSubmitted” (for example, Smith-Education-2022-09-13.pdf).
3. Upload the file to the Rebecca Blank and Hanns Kuttner Box folder.
4. Representatives from the Office of the Provost will review proposals and notify the dean of their decision.

Fund Management

• • In WISER, Rebecca Blank and Hanns Kuttner professorships are managed on fund 233 projects
  • Professorship funds start July 1 of the fiscal year after selection
  • When the term of the professorship ends, allocations cease and recipients have three (3) years from the award end date to use remaining funds, as long as they remain faculty at UW–Madison

Award Termination

• Funding for the professorship will terminate:
  • When the award end date is reached
  • If the recipient elects to give up the professorship
  • If the recipient resigns from the university (Note: Account is closed at time of resignation.)
• Schools or colleges must notify the Office of the Provost of any change in status of a Rebecca Blank or Hanns Kuttner Professorship recipient via email at professorships@provost.wisc.edu.