About the DSL Infinite Mile Awards
The original "Infinite Mile Award" was established in 2001 as part of a larger Institute-wide Rewards and Recognition program. This award is now given to employees in more than twenty departments throughout MIT. Each year, the Division of Student Life gathers to acknowledge the outstanding dedication and performance of its employees in a broader ceremony called the Infinite Mile Awards Ceremony. It's our chance to thank everyone for their hard work and to recognize a number of our exemplary colleagues.
The DSL bestows several awards at this ceremony. The categories are: Here for Students, Meeting the Need, Bringing out the Best, Unsung Hero Award, the Innovation Award, and the Building Community Awards. To help us recognize and celebrate a wide range of efforts, we’re asking for your help: we urge you to nominate a colleague or co-worker for one of these important awards.
Who is Eligible?
These awards are intended primarily to acknowledge the work of benefits eligible service, support, administrative, and other academic staff. Staff must be employed by DSL at the time of the Infinite Mile Awards to be recipients. Both teams and individuals are eligible to be nominated for any of the award categories. Subcontractors, consultants, and outsourced or temporary employees are not eligible for the awards.
Nomination Process
Nominations for the 2024 Infinite Mile Awards are now open! Click here to submit a nomination!
In addition, please save the date for the ceremony on June 6th at 2:00 pm in Walker Memorial.
Note: All personnel in the Division for Student Life are eligible to nominate or be nominated for an Infinite Mile award, except for one restriction, which is part of Institute Best Practices. It states that no one can win an Infinite Mile Award two years in a row. In addition, DSL staff are encouraged to nominate employees or teams of other MIT offices who have provided exceptional service to DSL. Nominations of DSL staff from other MIT offices will also be considered for eligibility.
Selection Process
At the end of April, the Infinite Mile Award Selection Committee will review all nominations and select the finalists. This committee includes some of the previous year's recipients and includes representatives from a cross-section of DSL offices and staff categories.
Notification
After a finalist has been selected by the committee, DSL-HR will contact the primary nominator of that recipient so that he or she may be the first to share the good news. DSL Human Resources will then notify each of this year's recipient individuals and teams, and announce the names to the DSL community.
At the awards ceremony in June, Dean Nelson will present the recipients with a letter of congratulations and a plaque honoring their contributions to the DSL and MIT. The letter will also be copied to their Department Head and put in their personnel file. Note: All individuals who were nominated but not selected for an award will also receive letters recognizing their nomination (copied to their managers) following the awards ceremony.
Questions?
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to Alicja Estabrooks (estabroa@mit.edu) or Katie Tavares (ktavares@mit.edu)