Ernest Morrell Honored With 2026 President’s Award

The University of Notre Dame posthumously honored Ernest Morrell with the 2026 President’s Award, one of the University’s highest faculty honors recognizing pioneering and visionary achievements in research, public impact, and creative endeavor.

Throughout his career, Ernest led intellectually ambitious and socially consequential work centered on a deeply humanistic vision of education. A titan in the fields of literacy education, critical media literacy, and youth participatory action research, his scholarship reflected a profound belief in the dignity of every learner and the transformative power of education. His work advanced a liberatory vision of literacy rooted in agency, informed citizenship, and the full participation of young people in civic and cultural life.

A beloved teacher, mentor, colleague, and nationally respected scholar, Ernest shaped generations of students and educators through both his scholarship and his personal witness. His impact was recognized at the highest levels of academic distinction, including membership in the National Academy of Education and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, as well as service as past president of the National Council of Teachers of English.

At Notre Dame, Ernest served as the Coyle Professor of Literacy Education, Professor of English, Director of the Center for Literacy Education at the Institute for Educational Initiatives (IEI), and Associate Dean for the Humanities and Faculty Development in the College of Arts & Letters. His legacy continues to inspire the IEI community through his commitment to educational equity, intellectual rigor, human flourishing, and the common good.

For more on Ernest’s life and legacy, read the IEI’s in memoriam tribute: In Memoriam: Ernest Morrell.