Northern Illinois University
Center for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language and Literacy

We are committed to creating a new generation of professionals who have a broad perspective on the study of language and literacy. Each year the CISLL Outstanding Student Award (COSA) is awarded to a student affiliate who, throughout their graduate career, has best exemplified our mission to understand the processes involved in language and literacy skills to enhance quality of life at home, at work, and in the community, and who shows great promise as a future professional or researcher in the fields represented by CISLL.

This $500 award is intended to recognize the student's scholarly work and contributions to CISLL's mission. The recipient is expected to attend CISLL's annual end-of-year retreat.

Nominations and Application

Nominations and application materials for the award must be submitted by a CISLL faculty affiliate, and the nominee must have been a student affiliate for the past academic year.

Required Materials

Application materials must include the following:

• Letter of recommendation from the CISLL Faculty Affiliate sponsor
• A 500-word statement written by the student nominee providing:
  • An overview of their scholarly work and contributions related to CISLL's mission. This may include:
    • Academic research
    • Advocacy, leadership, or outreach
    • Curricular design and/or innovation
  • A description of their involvement with CISLL, including attendance at CISLL events
• Student nominee's curriculum vitae

Application Evaluation

Applications will be evaluated by members of the CISLL Steering Committee in terms of the contributions that the student has made to furthering CISLL's mission, their potential for contributing to the fields representing the mission of CISLL (i.e., alignment of work with CISLL's mission and strength of faculty endorsement), and their active engagement in CISLL events prior to the submission of an application (i.e., evidence of involvement in CISLL).

Submission and Deadline

• Applicants must submit a nomination and all supporting materials by sending to cisll@niu.edu by April 2, 2024.
• Recipients will be notified of their selection by April 19, 2024.
• Recipients are expected to attend CISLL's annual retreat at the Holmes Students Center on May 3, 2024.