Awards / Professional Excellence and Service Awards

Roy Rosenzweig Distinguished Service Award

Presented to an individual(s) whose contributions have significantly enriched our understanding and appreciation of American history.


Overview

SUBMISSION DEADLINE: OCTOBER 1, 2023

The Roy Rosenzweig Distinguished Service Award is presented each year to an individual or individuals whose contributions have significantly enriched our understanding and appreciation of American history. Beginning in 2008, the award is named in memory of Roy Rosenzweig, who was the Mark and Barbara Fried Chair and founding director of the Center for History and New Media at George Mason University. Rosenzweig, a pioneer in the field of digital humanities, was actively involved in OAH for more than 15 years, serving on its Nominating Board, program committees, Executive Board, and as an OAH Distinguished Lecturer. In 2011, George Mason University renamed the Center for History and New Media to honor his memory. Rosenzweig passed away in 2007 at the age of 57.


Requirements

Scholars, teachers, writers, public historians, and officeholders, particularly with a record of service to OAH and the profession, are all eligible for the prize.

Process

The selection committee is composed annually of the four outgoing Executive Board members. Any member of OAH can submit a nomination which will be considered by the selection committee along with other nominations generated by the committee. Nominations will remain active for three years. Nominations should be submitted by email to [email protected], indicating “2024 Roy Rosenzweig Distinguished Service Award” in the subject line.

Past Winners

2023
Lonnie G. Bunch III , Smithsonian Institution

2022
Elaine Tyler May, University of Minnesota

2021
Emilio Zamora, University of Texas at Austin

2020
Eric Foner, Columbia University

2019
Vicki L. Ruiz, University of California, Irvine

2018
Linda K. Kerber, University of Iowa

2017
Linda Gordon, New York University

2016
Nancy A. Hewitt, Rutgers University

2015
Thomas Bender, New York University; Michael B. Katz, University of Pennsylvania

2014
Mary Frances Berry, University of Pennsylvania

2013
John D’Emilio, University of Illinois at Chicago

2012
Ira Berlin, University of Maryland, College Park

2011
Robert Griffith, American University

2010
William H. Chafe, Duke University

2009
Joyce Appleby, University of California, Los Angeles (Emerita); Susan Armeny, The Journal of American History; Stanley N. Katz, Princeton University

2008
David Thelen, Indiana University, Bloomington

2007
David M. Kennedy, Stanford University; Roy Rosenzweig, George Mason University

2006
Lawrence W. Levine, George Mason University and University of California, Berkeley (Emeritus)

2005
Dwight T. Pitcaithley, National Park Service

2004
Gwendolyn Midlo Hall, Rutgers University

2003
Gary B. Nash, University of California, Los Angeles

2002
John Hope Franklin, Duke University (Emeritus); Gerda Lerner, University of Wisconsin, Madison; Anne Firor Scott, Duke University (Emerita)

2001
Richard S. Kirkendall, University of Washington (Emeritus); Maeva Marcus, Supreme Court Historical Society

2000
Al Young, Northern Illinois University

1999
Samuel P. Hays, University of Pittsburgh; Sidney R. Yates, U.S. House of Representatives

1997
Henry May, University of California, Berkeley

1996
Edmund S. Morgan, Yale University

1995
John Hope Franklin, Duke University

1993
Kenneth Stampp, University of California, Berkeley

1992
Richard W. Leopold, Northwestern University

1990
Willie Lee Rose, Johns Hopkins University

1989
C. Vann Woodward, Johns Hopkins University

1984
Thomas D. Clark, University of Kentucky

1983
Thomas Bailey, Stanford University; John Caughey, University of California, Los Angeles; Thomas Cochran, University of Pennsylvania

1982
Elmer Ellis, University of Missouri; Paul Gates, Cornell University

1981
Ralph P. Bieber; Merle Curti, University of Wisconsin

Award Committee

Philip J. Deloria, Harvard University (Committee Chair)
Catherine Allgor, Massachusetts Historical Society
Ashley D. Farmer, University of Texas, Austin
Joanne Freeman, Yale University