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Excellence in Education Medal Award Recipients

The Excellence in Education Medal, established in 2016 and sponsored by William C. Miller and Ellen Sontag-Miller, recognizes outstanding contributions to new or unique educational programs that teach the technologies of motion pictures, television, or other imaging sciences, including emerging media technology.

 

2025 - Polly Hickling

The 2025 Excellence in Education Medal is awarded to Polly Hickling, in recognition of her outstanding contributions to developing inclusive and accessible learning pathways in the dynamic field of media engineering. Through her innovative use of non-traditional teaching strategies in both academic and professional settings, Hickling has ensured that learners from diverse backgrounds are engaged, supported, and empowered to advance their careers. Beyond the classroom, Hickling actively promotes career development as Head of Education for the global networking organization Women in Streaming Media (WSM), where she has established mentorship and internship opportunities connecting women with leaders in the streaming media industry. Her initiatives for WSM include launching a podcast and organizing a hackathon aimed at encouraging young women to explore technology. In addition, Hickling serves as a Trustee of RISE Academy, supporting early-career professionals through its summer school program, which prepares new talent for success in the broadcast industry.

2024

Chaitanya Chinchlikar

In recognition of his efforts, alongside Whistling Woods International – India's premier Film & Creative Arts institute, to mainstream media and entertainment education in India and to incorporate emerging technologies into the curriculum, such as Virtual Production, Cinematic VR, AI, and cloud computing. While integrating new technologies into the school’s curriculum, Chinchlikar has also led the institution’s efforts to establish partnerships with global Media and Entertainment Technology companies to create multiple Research & Development labs at the Whistling Woods campus. By developing workflows and designing courses around these emerging technologies, Whistling Woods continues to foster a learning environment where students contribute to raising the qualitative & technical bar of the Indian Film Entertainment industry.

2023

Dr. Wolfgang Ruppel

In recognition of his contributions to media technology education in Germany, particularly during more than 15 years leading the engineering department at RheinMain University. Along with his academic career, he contributed to SMPTE by co-chairing SMPTE Technology Committee 31 FS-File Formats and Systems. He also provided the students with engaging and real-world experiences that allowed them to collaborate with industry experts. 

2022
Carrie Wootten

In recognition of her outstanding efforts to promote and foster careers within the broadcast technology industry through her work with universities and accrediting bodies, and the establishment of the Rise Up Academy. The Academy works to expose students as young as nine years old to the media technology industry through hands-on workshops and education, with the ambition to enable the development of a more diverse and qualified workforce entering the industry. To this end, Wooten has also worked to implement the Broadcast and Media Systems Engineering Degree Apprenticeship program at Ravensbourne University, and to develop specific technologist and engineer pathways within the ScreenSkills website. In addition, the award-winning Rise Mentoring Program has helped to promote gender diversity in the industry and has worked to retain female professionals in the field through the invaluable support provided by their mentors.

2021
Huw Davies

In recognition of his near-decade-long work at the forefront of apprenticeship development for motion picture engineering/technologists in the United Kingdom. This form of education has proven to be very successful at enabling people to enter the field of broadcast engineering, including some who might not have considered it otherwise. Creating an apprenticeship can be a challenging process that involves many parties, including educational institutions and employers. Innovators like Huw Davies help to keep media technology education relevant and inclusive

2020
Corey Carbonara

In recognition of his more than 35 years of teaching production and media technology. His ability to transform complex ideas into lessons that his students can understand is revered. His passion for media and digital technology and for the role they play in the lives of individuals is evident in every class he teaches.

2019
Elizabeth Daley

In recognition of her three decades of pioneering leadership as Dean of the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts.  Daley has demonstrated her dedication to the essential role that technology plays in entertainment by establishing the Entertainment Technology Center, the Interactive Media and Games Program, and the Immersive Media Lab at the USC, as well as her selection of faculty who appreciate the interaction between technology and storytelling.

2016
Michael F. Korpi

For his innovative methods of teaching, especially creating joint courses at Baylor University, in which multidisciplinary teams of creative and technical students collaborate on projects at an accelerated schedule. The students enrolled in this program accomplish in a single semester, tasks that conventionally require much more time. The team-building skills and cross-disciplinary training students gain from Korpi’s innovative courses are directly applicable to and prepare students for the world outside academia.