The Opal Mann Green Award

Congratulations to the 2023 Opal Mann Green Award Winner

Language & Life Project, led by Dr. Walt Wolfram and team Jeffrey Raeser, Neal Hutcheson, Danica Cullinan, Brody McCurdy and Lydia Elrod

 

Opal Hurley Mann GreenThe Opal Mann Green Engagement and Scholarship Award was established in 2010 to recognize and memorialize Dr. Opal Mann Green’s distinguished leadership and dedication to the values of:

  • Using democracy in the classroom, in the community, and at home,
  • Creating inclusionary teams, and
  • Community-based learning and mutually-beneficial action around local issues valued by community members.

She exhibited these values throughout her career, family life, and community volunteer life. Dr. Opal Hurley Mann Green, former faculty member and leader at the county, state, and national level within Cooperative Extension, led an illustrious professional career spanning from 1943 to 1982, and then served as a community leader until 2009. Her lifelong teaching, leadership, and positive modeling to others was congruent with John Dewey’s ideas of democracy in education, and in the community. 

This annual recognition is awarded to a team (or teams) of individuals whose significant contributions and accomplishments have demonstrated excellence as engaged scholars who practice collaborative democratic strategies reflected in the Kellogg Commission Seven Part Test. The seven characteristics include responsiveness, respect for partners, academic neutrality, accessibility, integration, coordination, and resource partnerships. The recognition rewards authentic teamwork across the organizational structures within the university and community. It reflects programs that have been valued by the community and mutually beneficial to partners.

 

Eligible teams can include community partners, staff, volunteers, and faculty of NC State University colleges and its extension, engagement, and economic development units. The qualifying characteristics to be considered in the nomination process are listed below.

 

Qualifying Characteristics

The characteristics listed below should be woven into a continuous narrative that describes the success of the engagement program. Tell the story of your engagement program success keeping these characteristics in mind.

  • Engagement. Describe how the team of primary leaders implemented the Kellogg Commission Engagement Seven Part Test in planning, implementation, and continuous improvement of the program.
  • Empowerment and Teamwork. Describe how you implemented (democratic) strategies that empowered team members, created inclusion, recognized contributions of partners, and negotiated democratically to achieve mutually beneficial outcomes. Describe how resource partnerships developed to support program sustainability and effectively address the issue or problem until resolved.
  • Outcomes and Impact. Describe accomplishments that were beneficial, valued by the community, and that informed engagement academically (scholarly articles, presentations, and poster sessions).

 

Submission Guidelines and Evaluation Criteria

The narrative for the award application should illustrate with documentation that the team of primary leaders for the project model the Kellogg Commission Seven Part Test of Engagement in planning, implementation, and continuous improvement. These guiding characteristics include:

  • Responsiveness
  • Respect for Partners
  • Academic neutrality
  • Accessibility
  • Integration
  • Coordination
  • Resource partnerships

Submissions: Submission may be made by those who observed the program or by the team who implemented the program. All documentation must be double-spaced, in 12-point font.

The application packet should follow the following outline:

Cover Page (1 page): Identify the project title, name of the principal contact person, address, phone number, email address, dates of the project, and listing the project partner units or entities.

Abstract (1 page): Summarize the program, partners, duration, and the significance to the university and the community. It should be a concise description that can be used on the award website, and in the awards program.

Narrative (up to 6 pages): Tell the story of your project and include the details of the people, partner entities, project duration, partnership relationships, and impacts and significance. Use the characteristics above as guide.

Appendix (up to 4 pages): This should include a summary listing of documentation to outline the impact of the project. This could include summaries of evaluations, news releases, citations of publications, and website addresses. A letter of endorsement from a community partner or consortium of partners must be included.

Past Winners

  • 2022: Coastal Dynamics Design Lab
  • 2021: Vacationer Supported Agriculture
  • 2020: Northeast Leadership Academy
  • 2019: Community Food Strategies
  • 2018: The Community Counseling, Education, and Research Center
  • 2017: North Carolina Food Youth Initiative
  • 2016: North Carolina Food Youth Initiative
  • 2015: VOLAR: Voluntarios Ahora en Raleigh
    Voices into Action: The Families, Food, and Health Project
    North Carolina Community Garden Partners
  • 2014: Sandhills SET Green Fields Initiative
    Landscape Architecture (LAR) Design/Build Studio
  • 2013: Democratic Pathways to Change: Center for Family and Community Engagement
    North Carolina Fresh Produce Safety Task Force
  • 2012: Center for Environmental Farming Systems