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Awards and Prizes

This section announces competitions for awards and prizes within the field of US history. Please submit your announcement using this form.

Fulbright US Scholar Award: Mary Ball Washington Award in American History

Commencing September 2017 and based at University College Dublin School of History, the successful candidate will conduct a combination of teaching and research, with the teaching component of the grant to be agreed upon with the Head of School. The Scholar will have the opportunity to conduct and present his/her own research, and will be expected to mentor graduate students and contribute to the school's Distinguished Lecture Series.

This Award is for U.S. citizens and open to academics only. Ph.D. (or other terminal degree) plus teaching experience at college/university level and tenure required. A letter of invitation from the host University is required.

Application Deadline: 1 August 2016

For More Information: http://catalog.cies.org/viewAward.aspx?n=7519&dc=EI

Posted: April 19, 2016
Tagged: Awards and Prizes

NEH Public Scholar Grant Opportunity

The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) invites applications for the 2016 round of the Public Scholar Program, which is intended to support well-researched books in the humanities that have been conceived and written to reach a broad readership. Books supported through the Public Scholar Program might present a narrative history, tell the stories of important individuals, analyze significant texts, provide a synthesis of ideas, revive interest in a neglected subject, or examine the latest thinking on a topic. Most importantly, they should present significant humanities topics in a way that is accessible to general readers.

Read More>>

Read more >

Posted: December 9, 2015
Tagged: Fellowships, Awards and Prizes

The SAA Donald Peterson Student Travel Award

The Society of American Archivists Donald Peterson Student Travel Award Subcommittee invites applications from archival science students and recent graduates of archival programs. The award subsidizes travel to the SAA Annual Meeting for students presenting research or actively participating in an SAA-sponsored committee, section, or roundtable.

Award and application information follow below. The application deadline is February 28, 2016. If you have any questions regarding the award or the application process, please contact Rachel Howard, Donald Peterson Student Travel Award Committee Chair, at rachel.howard@louisville.edu.

Purpose and Criteria for Selection
Established in 2005, this award supports students and recent graduates from graduate archival programs within North America to attend SAA's Annual Meeting. The goal of the scholarship is to stimulate greater participation in the activities of the Association by students and recent graduates. This participation must include either a presentation of research during the Annual Meeting or active participation in an SAA-sponsored committee, section, or roundtable.

Eligibility
Awarded to an SAA member in good standing who is currently enrolled in an archival education program or who graduated from an archival education program in the previous calendar year. Applications are evaluated based on the merits of the applicant's essay and letters of recommendation.

Sponsor and Funding
The Society of American Archivists, in honor of Donald Peterson (1908-1999), New York lawyer and philatelist, whose deep appreciation of world history and preservation developed early through his stamp collecting and held true throughout his life.

Prize
Up to $1,000 in support of registration, travel, and accommodation expenses associated with the SAA Annual Meeting.

Application Form and Documentation
Submit three copies of the following to the address on the application form:
1. A 500-word essay describing the applicant's career goals and potential impact on the archival profession.
2. Unofficial transcript to verify student status or copy of graduate diploma.
3. Two letters of recommendation from individuals having definite knowledge of the applicant's qualifications.
4. Application form.

Application Deadline
February 28, 2016

Posted: December 3, 2015
Tagged: Awards and Prizes

National Council on Public History Call for Award Nominations

National Council on Public History awards recognize excellence in the diverse ways public historians apply their skills to the world around us. The award program promotes professionalism and best practices among public historians and raises awareness about their activities. Recipients will be honored during the annual meeting, March 16-19, 2016 in Baltimore, Maryland.
Guidelines and current and past recipients are listed on the NCPH website: http://ncph.org/cms/awards/

Posted: October 8, 2015
Tagged: Awards and Prizes

Abbott Lowell Cummings Prize

The Abbott Lowell Cummings Prize, named after the founding president of the Vernacular Architecture Forum, is awarded annually to the publication that has made the most significant contribution to the study of vernacular architecture and cultural landscapes. In judging the nominated books, the jurors look for a publication that is:

- based on primary research,
- emphasizes fieldwork,
- breaks new ground in interpretation or methodology, and
- contributes generally to the intellectual vitality of vernacular studies in North America

Entries may come from any discipline concerned with vernacular architecture studies. Books published in the two calendar years prior to the conference year are eligible for consideration. Edited collections are not eligible.

The nomination deadline for the 2016 Cummings Prize is December 15, 2015.

More information is available at: http://www.vafweb.org/Cummings-Prize

There is no application form, but a cover letter should include a complete mailing address, phone number and email address in order to notify the candidate should the nominated work receive the award.

Books should be sent directly by the author or publisher to each of the three committee members for the Cummings Prize. Please contact the committee chair with any questions at cummingsprize@vafweb.org.

2016 Cummings Prize committee:

Jennifer Reut
429 Ethan Allen Avenue
Takoma Park, MD 20912

Prof. Thomas Hubka
7339 SE 31st Ave.
Portland, OR 97202

Janet Ore
History Department
Campus Delivery 1776
Colorado State University

Posted: September 30, 2015
Tagged: Awards and Prizes

2016 John Wesley Powell Prize Call for Nominations (Historic Preservation Project)

The Society for History in the Federal Government (SHFG) is calling for nominations for the John Wesley Powell Prize, deadline November 30, 2015. The Prize alternates annually in recognizing excellence in the fields of historic preservation and historical displays. In 2016, the prize will be awarded to either an individual or to principal collaborators for a single major historic preservation project completed in 2014 or 2015. The award for historic preservation is given for achievement in preservation of records, artifacts, buildings, historical sites, and other historical entities. The winner will be announced in the spring of 2016 at the annual meeting of the SHFG.

For more information, click here.

Posted: August 26, 2015
Tagged: Awards and Prizes

William and Mary Quarterly Announces Prize Winners

2014 LESTER J. CAPPON AWARD
The Editorial Board chose Molly A. Warsh as the winner of the LESTER J. CAPPON AWARD. The award honors Warsh's "A Political Ecology in the Early Spanish Caribbean" (October) as the best article published in the journal in 2014.

The annual best-article award is named in memory of Lester J. Cappon. Lester Cappon edited the Quarterly from 1955 to 1956, and again in 1963. He was the Institute's first editor of the book program (1945–1954) and served as Institute director from 1954 until 1969.

2014 RICHARD L. MORTON AWARD
For his article "'Here is my country': Too Né's Map of Lewis and Clark in the Great Plains" (October), Christopher Steinke has been chosen by the WMQ Editorial Board as the recipient of the RICHARD L. MORTON AWARD for 2014.

The Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture's Richard L. Morton Award recognizes a distinguished article by an author in graduate study at the time of final submission. Offered since 1986, the prize honors the founding editor of the William and Mary Quarterly's third series. Richard Morton was a respected teacher for forty years at the College of William & Mary and a leading colonial historian of his time.

For More Information: http://oieahc.wm.edu/wmq/prizes.html

Posted: July 9, 2015
Tagged: Awards and Prizes

Call For American Journalism's Next Rising Scholar Award

American Journalism, the flagship journal of the American Journalism Historians Association, seeks applications for its Rising Scholar Award. The application deadline is Monday, June 1, 2015.
The award provides research assistance of up to $2,000 for a junior, untenured faculty member or a media professional who has transitioned within the last four years to full-time work in the academy. The proposed research project must be related to media history, and all methodological approaches are welcomed.

Applicants must be current AJHA members at the time the proposal is submitted. Proposals may be for sole-authored or co-authored work (award amount will be shared).

Applicants must submit the following to Jinx C. Broussard, Manship School of Mass Communications, 205 Hodges Hall, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, or via e-mail to jinxy@lsu.edu:
• Cover letter with name and contact information for applicant(s).
• Three- to five-page prospectus of the project timeline, describing and explaining the topic, scope, objectives, primary sources, and justifying its contribution to the historiography of the mass media.
• One-page itemized budget. Indicate if additional funding will be used, including the source and amount.
• If appropriate, include Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval from the university.
• A list of possible publication venues for the finished project.
• A letter of support from the applicant's department chair or dean.
• A curriculum vita of no more than three pages.

Founded in 1981, the American Journalism Historians Association seeks to advance education and research in mass communication history. Members work to raise historical standards and ensure that all scholars and students recognize the vast importance of media history and apply this knowledge to the advancement of society. For more information on AJHA, visit ajhaonline.org

Posted: May 4, 2015
Tagged: Awards and Prizes

2016 Margaret A. Blanchard Doctoral Dissertation Prize

The AJHA Margaret A. Blanchard Doctoral Dissertation Prize, given for the first time in 1997, is awarded annually for the best doctoral dissertation dealing with mass communication history. An honorarium of $500 accompanies the prize, and a $200 honorarium is awarded to each honorable mention.
Eligible works shall include both quantitative and qualitative historical dissertations, written in English, which have been completed between January 1, 2015, and December 31, 2015. For the purposes of this award, a "completed" work is defined as one which has not only been submitted and defended but also revised and filed in final form at the applicable doctoral-degree-granting university by December 31, 2015.

To be considered, nomination packets must include:
(a) One copy of the complete dissertation in hard copy;
(b) One digital copy of the complete dissertation on a CD;
(c) Four copies each of the following items, with all author, school, and dissertation committee identification of any kind whited-out:
(i.) a single chapter from the dissertation [preferably not to exceed 50 manuscript pages, not including notes, charts or photographs],
(ii.) a 200-word dissertation abstract,
(iii.) the dissertation table of contents;
(d) a letter of nomination from the dissertation chair/director or the chair of the university department in which the dissertation was written;
(e) a cover letter from the nominee:
(i.) containing complete (home and work) contact information including postal addresses, phone numbers and e-mail addresses,
(ii.) indicating a willingness, should the dissertation be selected for a prize, both to attend the awarding ceremony and to deliver a public presentation based on the dissertation at the 2016 American Journalism Historians Association Annual Convention 6-8 October 2016 in St. Petersburg, FL.

Note: Regarding Paragraph (c.)(i.) above, as a guide to selecting a chapter for submission, the Award Committee has in the past expressed a preference for a chapter which, if possible, highlights the work's strengths as a piece of primary-sourced original research.
Nominations, along with all the supporting materials, should be sent to: Prof. David Abrahamson, Chair, AJHA Margaret A. Blanchard Doctoral Dissertation Prize Committee, Medill School of Journalism, Northwestern University, 1845 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208.

The deadline for entries is a postmark date of February 1, 2016.

Posted: May 4, 2015
Tagged: Awards and Prizes

Fulbright Scholar Program Opportunities

This year, the Fulbright Scholar Program is offering over 60 awards in the field of American History. Exciting opportunities are available in many countries including but not limited to:

For further awards in the field of American Studies, American History, and American Literature, please visit Opportunities in American Studies, where you will find award highlights and examples of successful projects in the discipline.

For eligibility factors, detailed application guidelines and review criteria, please follow this link: http://cies.org/program/core-fulbright-us-scholar-program. You may also wish to register for one of our webinars or join our online community, My Fulbright, a resource center for applicants interested in the program.

Applicants must be U.S. citizens, and the current competition will close on August 3, 2015.

Posted: May 1, 2015
Tagged: News of the Profession, Awards and Prizes

The John M. Collier Award for Forest History Journalism

The Forest History Society annually confers the John M. Collier Award for Forest History Journalism. The award recognizes the author of the best article on forest and conservation history published in newspapers, trade press, or general circulation magazines. An independent panel of judges considers depth of research, quality of analysis, clarity of expression, and overall significance when evaluating submissions.

The winning article will receive a $1,000 prize along with an opportunity to visit the Forest Historic Society Library and Archives or arrange for the presentation of the award plaque at a mutually agreed upon meeting or convention.

An original printed piece (photocopies are acceptable) or an electronic version of the nominated article(s) from the previous year's (2014) publications must be submitted to the Forest History Society postmarked no later than April 15, 2015. Author, publisher, and date of article must be included. Electronic versions should be sent to: andrea.anderson@foresthistory.org. A hardcopy of printed matter may be sent to Andrea at 701 William Vickers Ave., Durham, NC 27701.

John M. Collier was a working journalist. After many years of newspaper work, Collier completed his journalistic career with the Southern Forest Products Association. He also served on the Forest History Society Board of Directors. Following his untimely death, his friends arranged for an endowment to underwrite the costs of this memorial.

The award is open to any newspaper or general circulation magazine; professional or freelance journalist in North America. 

For more information: http://www.foresthistory.org/Fellowships/CollierAward.html

Posted: March 23, 2015
Tagged: News of the Profession, Awards and Prizes

SAA Spotlight Award

Purpose and Criteria for Selection: Established in 2005, the Spotlight Award recognizes the contributions of individuals who work for the good of the archives profession and of archival collections, and whose work would not typically receive public recognition. The nominee(s) should have achieved distinction in one or more of the following ways:

* Participating in special projects.
* Exhibiting tireless committee or advocacy work.
* Responding effectively to an unforeseen or pressing need or emergency.
* Contributing innovative or creative ideas to the profession.
* Performing extraordinary volunteerism.
* Quietly but effectively promoting the profession.

Eligibility: Awarded to an individual archivist or a group of up to five archivists who have collaborated on a project. Preference is given to archivists working in smaller repositories, especially those without institutional support for professional activities.

Nomination Requirements: A completed nomination form, downloadable here.

Sponsor and Funding: The Society of American Archivists Foundation.

Prize: A certificate and complimentary registration (for up to five individuals) to the SAA Annual Meeting occurring in the year in which the award is presented.

Submission Deadline and Nomination Form: Deadline: February 28, 2015. Please complete the nomination form and email it along with any applicable supporting documentation to awards@archivists.org with the subject line "Spotlight Award." Attachments should not exceed 5MB.
Alternately, nominations may be mailed. Materials must be postmarked by February 28, 2015, and should be sent to:
Spotlight Award Committee
Society of American Archivists
17 North State Street, Suite 1425
Chicago, IL 60602-4061

Please visit http://www2.archivists.org/recognition for a list and explanation of all of the awards offered by SAA. The above information and a list of past recipients is available at http://www2.archivists.org/governance/handbook/section12-spotlight.

Posted: February 12, 2015
Tagged: Awards and Prizes

Archival Innovator Award

Created in 2011, this award recognizes an individual archivist, a group of archivists, a repository, or an organization that demonstrates, through a combination of as many as possible of the criteria below, the greatest overall current impact on the profession or their communities.

· Creativity or innovation in approaching professional challenges.

· Demonstrated ability to think outside of professional or institutional norms.

· Ability to translate creativity, innovation, and new thinking into working solutions.

· Development of an archives program or outreach activity that has an extraordinary impact on a community.

· Commitment to the advancement of professional knowledge through traditional or emerging information-sharing media.

Link to the full citation and nomination form: http://www2.archivists.org/governance/handbook/section12-innovators

Link to an article in Archival Outlook on how to write an award nomination:

http://www.bluetoad.com/publication/?m=30305&l=1 , page 12.

Posted: January 23, 2015
Tagged: Awards and Prizes

Society of American Archivists Philip M. Hamer and Elizabeth Hamer Kegan Award

The Philip M. Hamer and Elizabeth Hamer Kegan Award Subcommittee of the Society of American Archivists seeks nominations for the 2015 award.

This award recognizes an archivist, editor, group of individuals, or institution that has increased public awareness of a specific body of documents through compilation, transcription, exhibition, or public presentation of archives or manuscript materials for educational, instructional, or other public purpose. Archives may include photographs, films, and visual archives. Publication may be in hard copy, microfilm, digital, or other circulating medium.

Recent winners include:
2014: Emma Goldman Papers Project
2013: Densho, The Japanese American Legacy Project
2012: Immigration History Research Center, University of Minnesota
2011: University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Libraries March On Milwaukee Civil Rights History Project Team
2010: The Giza Archives Project at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Eligibility:
Individual archivists and editors, groups of individuals, and organizations are eligible.

Application Deadline:
All nominations shall be submitted to SAA by February 28 of each year. CLICK HERE to download the RTF application form, which includes instructions for submission.

For more information on SAA awards and the nominations process, please go to http://www.archivists.org/recognition/index.asp.

Posted: January 12, 2015
Tagged: Awards and Prizes

Peter J. Gomes Memorial Book Prize

The Massachusetts Historical Society invites submissions for the 2015 Peter J. Gomes Memorial Book Prize for a distinguished book in English on the history of Massachusetts published in 2014. The author of the title selected will receive a letter of award and a prize of $2,500.

All nonfiction historical works representing any period of the history of Massachusetts are eligible for consideration. Works must represent original research. Monographs and edited collections are eligible; if scholarly in nature, the volume should also appeal to the general reader. Works that address a wider geographic region than Massachusetts should make a significant contribution to the history of the Commonwealth. Likewise, biographies should address the life of someone intimately connected with Massachusetts. Please see http://www.masshist.org/gomesprize for full details. The committee is seeking works of exemplary scholarship written in a clear and engaging style.

Submissions will be accepted from publishers or authors. Please provide three copies of each book by May 1 of the year following the date of copyright. Only books with a 2014 copyright date are eligible in 2015. Include contact information for the author and publisher, indicating the submitter. Send books to: Massachusetts Historical Society, Attention: Gomes Prize, 1154 Boylston Street, Boston, MA, 02215. Electronic submissions cannot be accepted.

Posted: December 23, 2014
Tagged: Awards and Prizes

Paul E. Buchanan Award

The Vernacular Architecture Forum seeks submissions for the Paul E. Buchanan Award. The award recognizes contributions to the study and preservation of vernacular architecture and the cultural landscape that do not take the form of books or published work. Projects completed in the last two years are eligible for consideration and may include architectural recording projects, historic structures reports, cultural resource surveys, historic designation studies, preservation plans, restoration projects, exhibits, visual arts presentations, educational and interpretive programs and others. Deadline for submission is February 16, 2015.

For More Information: http://www.vafweb.wildapricot.org/Buchanan-Award

Posted: December 5, 2014
Tagged: Awards and Prizes

Vernacular Architecture Forum Offers Bishir Prize

The Vernacular Architecture Forum offers the Bishir Prize to the scholarly article from a juried North American publication that has made the most significant contribution to the study of vernacular architecture and cultural landscapes. Submissions due December 15, 2014.

For More Information: http://www.vafweb.wildapricot.org/Bishir-prize

Posted: November 6, 2014
Tagged: Awards and Prizes

Call for Nominations: Powell Prize 2015 - Society for History in the Federal Government

The John Wesley Powell Prize commemorates the explorer and federal administrator whose work demonstrated early recognition of the importance of historic preservation and historical display. The Powell Prize alternates annually in recognizing excellence in the fields of historic preservation and historical displays. In 2015, the prize will be awarded to either an individual or to principal collaborators for a single major historical display or exhibit project completed in 2013 or 2014. The award for historical display is given for any form of interpretive historical presentation including, but not limited to, museum exhibits, historical films, CD/DVDs, websites, or multi-media displays. The winner will be announced in the spring of 2015 at the annual meeting of the SHFG. Deadline for nominations is November 30, 2014.

Eligible Entrants
Any agency or unit of the federal government
Nongovernmental organizations, including federal contractors, for eligible activities on behalf of a unit of the federal government
Members of the Society for History in the Federal Government

See website for evaluation criteria and submission requirements.

Posted: August 20, 2014
Tagged: Awards and Prizes

Society for Latin American and Caribbean Anthropology Book Prize

The Society for Latin American and Caribbean Anthropology (SLACA), the largest section of the American Anthropological Association dedicated to Latin American research, is pleased to announce the establishment of a new book prize to recognize distinguished anthropological work that advances the understanding of the Americas in innovative and potentially transformative ways. Authors whose work engage history at the intersection of anthropology are encouraged to submit their book for consideration. The deadline for submission is August 1, 2014. No books received after that date will be considered for the prize.

To be eligible for consideration a book must be relevant to the field of Latin American and Caribbean anthropology. Works that focus on Latin American migrant and diasporic populations will also be considered. Works should be ethnographies or monographs. Textbooks and anthologies will not be considered, but works of original scholarship by more than one author may be submitted.

Jason Pribilsky
Chair, SLACA Book Prize Committee
Department of Anthropology
Whitman College
345 Boyer Ave.
Walla Walla, WA 99362

Posted: June 19, 2014
Tagged: Awards and Prizes

Mid-Atlantic Regional Archives Conference 2014 Arline Custer Award

The Mid-Atlantic Regional Archives Conference (MARAC) seeks submissions for its Arline Custer Memorial Award. The award recognizes the best books and articles written or compiled by individuals and institutions in the MARAC region (the District of Columbia, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia). Works under consideration include, but are not limited to, monographs, popular narratives, reference works, and exhibition catalogs using archival sources. Individuals or institutions may submit up to two works published between July 1, 2013 and June 30, 2014. Deadline for submissions is July 31, 2014. For more information visit http://www.marac.info/arline-custer-award

Posted: June 2, 2014
Tagged: Awards and Prizes