Behind Every Skilled Surgeon is a Great Teacher. Nominate Yours!

Submission Deadline: Monday, December 7, 2026

The AO North America Educator Award was established for each AO North America clinical specialty. The awards were named after legacy faculty as voted on by each specialty:

• Jeff Mast Educator Award (Trauma)
• Jesse Jupiter Educator Award (Hand)
• Alan Ruggles Educator Award (Vet)
• Brian Alpert Educator Award (CMF)
• John France Educator Award (Spine)

This year, we will be awarding AO North America Faculty from the specialties of Trauma, Hand, VET, CMF, and Spine based on nominations from you! This is an opportunity to recognize the amazing individuals who have contributed to the education of numerous learners and impacted how AO North America develops and delivers education.

Nomination Guidelines

The nomination criteria are:

• Be an AO North America Faculty in good standing for at least 5 years.
• Have made significant contributions and commitment to AO education.
• Demonstrated dedication and perseverance to AO North America program development/organizational processes.
• Influenced transformation and/or evolution in teaching practices.
• Have developed and applied innovative or creative teaching methods.
• Sustained leadership and fosters collaborative, inclusive group environments with open communication.

Submission Guidelines

Submission Requirements:

• Nomination by an active AO North America member.
• Letter from nominator that:
  • Describes the nominee’s contributions and impact to education through AO North America programs, committees, events, etc.
  • Describes nominee’s teaching impact and mentorship for learners.
  • States why you think this nominee deserves the award this year.
• Letter from nominee that includes:
  • A personal statement on the philosophy of teaching (e.g., what they believe teaching is and how they approach it).
  • A description of contributions to teaching through AO or otherwise.
  • A description of how they would leverage the recognition to support AO teaching principles and practices.

Letters should be a maximum of 1 page with 11 font Arial, 0.5-inch margins, and single-spaced. Nominees will be evaluated by an awards Committee from each represented specialty. Evaluations will be based on tenure as a teacher, contributions to teaching/discipline, educational scholarship, recognition within the AO community and peers, and review of AO course participation history.

Winners will be notified by early January and are expected to attend OneAO® 2027 (April 22-25, 2027) where they will be formally recognized and awarded at a special presentation. Registration, hotel and travel expenses will be covered for all award winners only.

OneAO Awards Committee

Chairperson: Brandon Wilkinson, MD

Committee Members:

• Travis Tollefson, MD, MPH, FACS
• Thomas Revak, DO
• Alan Ruggles, DVM, DACVS
• Carlos Bagley, MD

Advisory Member: Chitra Subramaniam, PhD

Questions? Contact Chitra Subramaniam, PhD, for more information.