The Rock Ethics Institute inaugurated the Stand Up Award to honor Penn State undergraduate students who have demonstrated courage, fortitude, and ethical leadership by taking a stand for a person, a cause, or a belief. This award and the individuals it honors should remind the entire Penn State community of how often the extraordinary act is possible in ordinary circumstances.

Absolutely! Any faculty, staff, student, or community member may nominate a Penn State undergraduate student from any campus for the Stand Up Award

Yes, the nominee must be enrolled as a full-time baccalaureate student at any Penn State campus during at least one semester of the 2018/19 academic year.

You can submit your nomination via the online nomination form. Both the nominee and the nominator can submit their information independently and the other will be notified once the required materials are submitted.

Nominators must write a confidential letter on behalf of the student. This letter should address  the items listed below. Please be specific and provide relevant details for the Stand Up Award Committee to consider in their review process.

• • How do you know the student?
  • How did you become aware of the student’s ethical leadership?
  • What did the student accomplish?
  • What is the ethical issue(s) that the student’s actions addressed?
  • How did the student serve as an exemplar of ethical leadership?

A three-part essay written by the nominee, of no more than 750 words, describing what was accomplished, the ethical reasoning that led to this action, and how these actions involved ethical leadership. The nominee can find the editable essay form here.  In order to understand the Rock Ethics Institute’s conception of ethical leadership we encourage students to view our Ethical Leadership Education module.