The Beckman award, a one-time $25,000 grant, was created in 2008 by Gail McKnight Beckman in honor of her mother, Dr. Elizabeth Hurlock Beckman. Recipients are chosen for having inspired their former students to “create an organization which has demonstrably conferred a benefit on the community at large,” according to the trust website. Alternatively, the faculty member must have inspired students to “establish on a lasting basis a concept, procedure, or movement of comparable benefit to the community at large.