Nominations for the 2026 Victorian Education Excellence Awards are open

This year, the Victorian Education Excellence Awards proudly marks 25 years of recognising the inspirational teachers, principals, assistant principals, business managers and education support staff who support children and young people to develop the skills, courage, and curiosity they need to succeed in life.

All staff employed by the Victorian government in a Victorian government school can nominate themselves, their team or a colleague for the 2026 VEEA. However, principals cannot self-nominate and must be nominated by a peer or colleague for outstanding primary or secondary principal categories.

Staff in specialist, P-9 or P-12 schools are eligible to apply for either primary or secondary categories. Responses to the selection criteria should focus on the school type chosen where applicable.

In the application form, nominators can choose to appear anonymous to the people they are nominating.

The following staff may nominate principals, assistant principals, teachers, business managers and education support colleagues for the VEEA

• Executive and principal class employees
• Teachers
• Education support class employees
• School Council members
• Regional Directors, Regional Executive Directors and Area Executive Directors
• Senior Education Improvement Leaders (SEILs)
• Koorie Education Coordinators (KECs) and Koorie Education Support Officers (KESOs)

Winners will receive grants of up to $25,000 to support ongoing professional development.

The winners of each award category will also be eligible to win Victoria’s top public education prize – the Lindsay Thompson Award for Excellence in Education and a further $20,000 grant.

Nominations close on Tuesday 26 May 2026 at 11:59 pm.

Judging panels select the category winners through a nomination, shortlisting and interview process.

Winners will be announced at a presentation ceremony on Friday 23 October 2026.

Nomination forms

Before you submit your nomination online, read through the below documents and then attach required endorsement forms with your nomination.

Enquiries

For enquiries, email excellence.awards@education.vic.gov.au