To recognize and honor important work in the higher education and research communities, the TIAA-CREF Institute administers three awards, two focusing on research and the other on leadership.
Through these awards programs, the TIAA-CREF Institute partners with higher education to motivate research and practices that contribute to the well-being of the individuals and institutions we serve.
TIAA-CREF Paul A. Samuelson Award
The TIAA-CREF Paul A. Samuelson Award is named in honor of MIT Professor of Economics, Emeritus, Nobel Laureate and former CREF trustee.
It is awarded annually in recognition of an outstanding research publication containing ideas that the public and private sectors can use to maintain and improve America’s lifelong financial well being. The author(s) of the winning publication will receive an award of $10,000.
TIAA-CREF Theodore M. Hesburgh Award
The TIAA-CREF Theodore M. Hesburgh Award is named in honor of the president emeritus of the University of Notre Dame and former member of the TIAA-CREF Board of Overseers.
The award recognizes leadership and commitment to higher education and contributions to the greater good. It is presented to a current college or university president or chancellor at the American Council on Education annual meeting.
TIAA-CREF Ruth Simms Hamilton Research Fellowship
The TIAA-CREF Ruth Simms Hamilton Research Fellowship was established to honor the work of Ruth Simms Hamilton, the late Michigan State University Professor and TIAA Trustee. Professor Hamilton was a TIAA Trustee from 1989 to 2003 and, during her 35-year career at Michigan State University, she was a highly regarded sociology professor and a faculty member of the African Studies Center, the Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies and the Center for Advanced Study of International Development.
