The Ludwik & Estelle Jus Memorial Human Rights Prize

Ludwik & Estelle (Stella) Jus were two Polish educators who risked their lives during the Holocaust to rescue Jewish people. This Prize was established in their honour to commemorate their deep belief in the moral value of human beings, irrespective of race, nationality, class, or religion.

Any member of the University of Toronto community can nominate another member of the University community. Self-nominations are not accepted.

Nominees for an Emerging Leader Award must be current students or administrative staff members (union or non-union) who have active status and are in good standing at the University of Toronto when nominations close.

Nominees for an Influential Leader Award must be faculty members, librarians, or administrative staff members (unionized or non-unionized) who have active status and are in good standing at the University of Toronto when nominations close.

Past recipients of an Award of Excellence can be nominated for the Ludwik & Estelle Jus Memorial Human Rights Prize, provided they meet the eligibility and selection criteria.

Successful nomination packages will demonstrate the nominee’s ability to meet the selection criteria (detailed below) by providing specific examples of their contributions to the University.

An individual can be nominated for only one category of the Ludwik & Estelle Jus Memorial Human Rights Prize each year.

Emerging Leader Selection Criteria

Evidence of leadership, demonstrated through:

• a commitment to advance the University's mission
• a significant contribution to equity, diversity, and inclusion at the institution. This contribution could be made through any of the following activities: involvement in student organizations; participation on committees (student committees and / or University committees); organization of special events, conferences, etc.; involvement in advocacy groups; and / or involvement in volunteer organizations on campus and/or in the general community and / or
• an exceptional commitment to and engagement with a particular issue of social justice, community, and / or community organization. Such community activism can take place on or off campus.

Please note: Nominees who are not engaged in scholarly or academic work must have made a lasting contribution in ways that exceed their normal work or study requirements.

Nominees for this category cannot be a past recipient of any Ludwik & Estelle Jus Memorial Leadership Prize.

Influential Leader Selection Criteria

Evidence of leadership, demonstrated through:

• rich and meaningful contributions at an institutional, community, and / or system level that promote and support equity, diversity, and inclusion within the institution
• a commitment to advance the University's mission,
• promoting and supporting equity, diversity and inclusion within the institution, and / or
• exceptional scholarly work (which may or may not be connected to the Holocaust), including individual publications, doctoral studies in relevant areas, or lifetime achievements.

Please note: Nominees who are not engaged in scholarly or academic work must have made a lasting contribution in ways that exceed their normal job requirements.

Nominees for this category cannot be a past recipient of a Ludwik & Estelle Jus Memorial Leadership Prize – Influential Leader.

The deadline for submitting a nomination was Friday, January 10, 2025 at 5:00 p.m. (EST).

Yes.

A complete nomination package for the Ludwik & Estelle Jus Memorial Human Rights Prize must include the following:

• The completed nomination form;
• An executive summary highlighting the nominee's most significant contributions, accomplishments, and impact related to the award criteria (minimum 200 words, maximum 300 words),
  • The University may publish the summary of successful nominees
  • An editor will review and revise your submitted text to ensure consistency among recipients
  • The nominee will have the opportunity to review and approve the final text before publication
• A cover letter from the nominator,
• The complete curriculum vitae for the candidate;
• One letter from the nominee’s supervisor or department head indicating that the nominee is in good standing, and
• Three letters of support from colleagues / peers / students.
  • Please note: a letter of support signed by multiple individuals counts as one letter towards the total.

In nomination and supporting letters for the Ludwik & Estelle Jus Memorial Human Rights Prize, nominators must identify, as specifically as possible, how the candidate has consistently exceeded the expectations of their position or program of study.

Letters should specifically address and illustrate one or more of the above selection criteria and indicate the following:

• The nominee’s distinction and / or dedication to their division or the institution more broadly,
• The level of responsibility related to the scope of accomplishments by the candidate, and
• The nominee’s dedication to the University’s principles of equity, diversity, and inclusion.

Each nomination and supporting letter should not exceed three pages in length. Refer to the guide “How to Write an Impactful Award Nomination” for additional details.

No, please do not submit more than the required number of documents / letters. The Selection Committee will not consider supplementary documents.

Please submit applications electronically to the Employee Recognition & Engagement Team of the Division of People Strategy, Equity & Culture. This team will administer the selection process for the Jus Memorial Human Rights Prize  on behalf of the University of Toronto Alumni Association (UTAA).

All letters of support are confidential; only the members of the Selection Committee will view them. Those who wish to view the letters for publicity or information purposes must first obtain permission from the individual(s) who wrote the letter. Once submitted, all application / nomination materials become the property of the Division of People Strategy, Equity & Culture and cannot be returned to either the nominator or the applicant.

The nominator is responsible for ensuring that nomination packages are complete. The Selection Committee will not consider incomplete nomination packages.

Nominations may be resubmitted for up to three consecutive years. A new nomination form and nomination letter must accompany each resubmission. The nominator is responsible for contacting all previous supporters for permission to carry forward letters of support.

Unsuccessful nominations exceeding the three-year limit may be resubmitted after a one-year hiatus, provided a new package is assembled. The nominator is responsible for retaining copies of the complete nomination package for future reference or resubmissions.

The Selection Committee, chaired by the Vice-President, People Strategy, Equity & Culture or their designate, will include:

• The Executive Director, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion or their designate, and
• Request for participation from past recipients of the Ludwik & Estelle Jus Memorial Human Rights Prize.

The committee will meet in Winter 2025 to select the 2025 Ludwik &Estelle Jus Memorial Human Rights Prize recipients.

Members of the Selection Committee will review the nomination packages and the award criteria in advance of the meeting date. At the meeting, committee members will discuss each nomination package and select deserving recipient(s).

The Selection Committee is empowered to recognize multiple recipients in any award category. Successful recipients will be chosen based on the application and the demonstrated impact of the nominee. The Selection Committee can also choose not to present the award or an award category.

We expect to inform all nominators and successful nominees of the adjudication results in February 2025.

Please contact the Employee Recognition & Engagement Team if you have questions about the program or need assistance developing your nomination.

Learn more about other staff recognition programs at U of T through our Recognition Scaffold.