The NCME Annual Award for Exceptional Achievement in Educational Measurement was established to recognize exceptional achievement during the previous three years.
The award may be given to recognize an outstanding technical or scientific contribution to the public or the field of educational measurement, which could include a book or a publication which is an application of technology or innovative ways of solving practical and theoretical measurement problems, inventive instrument development techniques, creative testing procedures or products, or scientific contributions of measurement to research methodology.
The award may also be given to recognize exceptional service, such as a practitioner might provide to a state, district, consortia, or client, excellence in teaching, outstanding mentorship or displaying dedication and/or commitment to equity, inclusion, and/or diversity in the field of educational measurement. Exceptional service might include a novel, technically sound methods of addressing real-world issues, facilitating data usage in making decisions, such as designing exceptionally informative score reports, and so on. To be eligible for this award, the contribution must have occurred initially during the previous three years.
The recipient of the NCME Annual Award receives a plaque and a $1,000 cash payment.
2026 Award Details
Eligibility
An award for 2026 would be for work completed after the 2023 Annual Meeting.
All individuals and groups in the field of educational measurement are eligible for this award. The candidate must be a member of NCME or he/she must become a member by the time the award is presented at the 2025 NCME Annual Meeting. NCME members are encouraged to submit nominations. Self-nominations are also encouraged.
Nomination
A nomination consists of a 3- to 5-page statement summarizing the contribution. The materials should clearly describe and demonstrate the importance of the contribution to the field of educational measurement. Additional supporting documentation (up to five documents) is also welcome. Materials should include the names and addresses of at least two persons familiar with the specific application and its impact/results, the names and all contact information on all nominees. The committee may request further materials and may contact others who are likely able to evaluate the contribution.
All award materials must be submitted via email to the NCME Annual Award Committee Chair, Yang Jiang (yang.jiang@tc.columbia.edu), with cc to the NCME Awards Board Liaison, Sue Lottridge (sue.lottridge@pearson.com), and the NCME management office (ncme@ncme.org). For additional information, please contact the committee chair.
The submission deadline for the 2026 NCME Annual Award is January 9, 2026. All materials must be submitted by this date.