John Lewis Award for Public Service to the Discipline of History

Awards & Prizes

The Association recognizes a wide variety of distinguished historical work, which can take the form of an exceptional book in the field, distinguished teaching and mentoring in the classroom, films, or digital projects and resources. Since 1896 the Association has conferred over a thousand awards. The names, publications, and projects of those who received these awards are a catalog of the best work produced by members of the historical discipline.

John Lewis Award for Public Service to the Discipline of History

Established in 2021, the prize is offered annually to recognize individuals outside the ranks of  professional historians who have made a significant contribution to the study, teaching, and public understanding of history, in the interest of social justice. The prize was established with an endowment gift from the Agentives Fund and replaces the Association’s Roosevelt-Wilson Award for Public Service, which was presented to Congressman Lewis in 2006.

The current prize amount is $1,000.

According to the selection criteria, recipients can be individuals or collaborative groups. They may include persons who have made a significant contribution to the support and encouragement of history through their actions. Such noteworthy activity may include advocacy for historical work and the importance of history to public culture and social justice, philanthropy, support for organizations that promote history in public life, historic preservation, or other work that cultivates public awareness of history and its value to public culture.

The executive director and the AHA president will serve as the jury and will recommend nominees to the AHA Council. The AHA Council will make the final selection of the honoree(s) at its June meeting. The recipients will be announced at the Association’s annual meeting.

Eligibility

_You can learn more about this opportunity by visiting the funder's website._

• Professional historians

_You must be a member of this organization to apply for this award - become a member._