Boe Paper Award
The Boe Paper Award honors the late Dr. Dennis Boe, former Director of Honors at East Central University and a prominent figure at NCHC and GPHC meetings. For many, Dr. Boe exemplified the qualities of a dedicated honors leader, blending scholarship, creativity, and leadership. His untimely passing in 2005 inspired the creation of the Boe Award, which has recognized excellence in student research since 2008. Dr. Boe was not only a respected scholar but also a talented musician, poet, and administrator. He performed in numerous concerts, was named Teacher of the Year at Eastern Oklahoma State and was a regional leader in the arts in Oklahoma.
All submissions for the Boe Paper Award will be reviewed by representatives from variety of Great Plains institutions after the January 23rd, 2026 deadline under the direction of the President-Elect of GPHC. Students and Honors Directors will be notified by Wednesday, February 11th, 2026 if they are presenting as part of the Boe Paper Award Competition at Conference.
Submissions that are not selected for the final competition will be automatically included in the conference program as an Oral Presentation. All oral presentations will take place on Saturday, March 7th, between 9am and noon, in the Regnier Center.
Britt Poster Award
The John Britt Poster Award honors the late John Britt who led the Honors program at Lee College, perhaps the most successful community college honors program in the nation, from 1995 until his retirement in 2012. Under his mentorship, Lee College students frequently won prestigious awards at both the regional and national levels, and many had their work accepted for publication. In 1998, he won the Bryan Teaching Award for best history teacher in the state of Texas, the first community college instructor to earn that designation. In 2003 he served as President of GPHC, and in 2018 the GPHC Poster Award was renamed in his honor.
Deans, Directors or Coordinators must submit their nominations for Britt Poster Awards no later than February 13th.
Posters will be judged on Friday, March 6 from 4:00pm to 5:30pm in the Regnier Center Atrium on the Johnson County Community College Campus.
Winners for the Boe and Britt Awards will be announced at the GPHC dinner on Saturday, March 7.