College of Menominee Nation Professor Vande Corput Wins National First-Year Seminars Award

Dr. Sarah Vande Corput of the College of Menominee Nation has been named the recipient of the 2026 Excellence in Teaching First‑Year Seminars Award, the college announced on Feb. 23, 2026. The announcement used the honorific "Dr." and identified Vande Corput with the college as the awarding institution made the recognition public that day.

CMN’s announcement included a partial description of the award, stating, "The honor recognizes an outstanding instructor whose work with first‑year seminar courses demonstrates" as presented in the college notice. The announcement did not specify the full criteria in the text released on Feb. 23, 2026, nor did it name an administering organization for the award in the material provided with the announcement.

Social media posts from the college and affiliates corroborated the recognition. An Instagram post stated, "Sarah Vande Corput was recognized and awarded with the Excellence in Teaching First‑Year Seminars Award." A Facebook post offered a similar line - "Sarah Vande Corput was recognized and awarded with the Excellence in ..." - and included an image fragment that reads "SUSTAINABLE NATION COLLEGE OF" in the posted artwork.

Biographical details available in the materials describe Vande Corput as an academic with sustained experience at CMN. One source fragment reads, "VandeCorput, Associate Professor at the College of Menominee Nation, has over a decade of faculty experience and has been instrumental in creating innovative" and stops midphrase. The college announcement and social posts did not expand on which programs or course innovations are referenced in that fragment.

The Feb. 23 announcement represents CMN’s public recognition of a faculty member whose work focuses on first‑year seminar teaching at the college. The materials released by CMN and shared on Instagram and Facebook confirmed the award and the recipient, but the college’s notice and accompanying social posts did not include a full statement of award criteria, details of a presentation or ceremony, or direct quotes from Dr. Vande Corput. CMN named Dr. Sarah Vande Corput as recipient on Feb. 23, 2026; further specifics about the award administration, the selection process, and the innovations alluded to in the biographical fragment were not included in the released text.