Non-confidential student suppport letter for a teaching award My home faculty announced a call of nominations for a teaching award. I am confident that my teaching contributions has been substantial and wish to be recognized. So I contacted the selection committee and ask them if I, as a nominee, can contact my (staff and faculty) colleagues and students to solicit their letters of support. 

And the answer is that I can do this to prepare the nomination package myself for submission, as long as nominators are given the option to send their letters to the committee directly if they wish to keep them confidential. 

So far, many of my students who responded took the option of sending their letters directly to me. I wonder if their letters, compared with those sent confidentially, will be in any way treated with less weight/value (given that I did get a green light by the selection committee)?
I can't see into the minds of the judges responsible for the award, but such letters might well be discounted. The problem is the possibility that the students were actually writing to solicit favors from you in the future - trying to "get on your good side". Actually, it is the perception that they might be trying to get some future favor. 

You might suggest to the writers that they send letters directly. 

In any case, the direct answer to whether confidential letters might hold more weight is yes, they might. 

But if there are a combination of letters sent confidentially and not and they are consistent, then I doubt it would be a problem. 

But IANAMR (I am nor a mind reader).