AASLH Leadership in History Awards
American Association for State and Local History
Nominations are now open for the 2022 Leadership in History Awards. For over seventy-five years, the American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) has given Leadership in History Awards to establish and encourage standards of excellence in the collection, preservation, and interpretation of state and local history in order to make the past more meaningful to all people.
By publicly recognizing superior and innovative achievements, the Leadership in History Award winners serve as models and inspirations for others in the field. We offer awards for many different types of projects, including publications, exhibits, public programming, and more. Award winners come from all over the country, from organizations of all kinds, sizes, and budgets.
Everyone is eligible to apply for awards: members, nonmembers, groups, individuals, all-volunteer sites, museums, libraries, archives, parks, arts groups, community organizations, etc. Our awards program, with the exception of the Publications category, is non-competitive, meaning your nomination is not in competition with others for a finite amount of awards. Your nomination is evaluated alone on its own merits. We encourage nominations from small and all-volunteer organizations. Great history work is being conducted in a myriad of ways and spaces, and deserves to be recognized and shared with the field.
Numerous innovative history projects have been created during the pandemic that deserve celebration, and awards are more than a pat on the back. They are invaluable tools for marketing your site, securing funds and grants, and validating experimentation and creativity.
Nominations for AASLH's Leadership in History Awards are due March 1. For more info, visit https://aaslh.org/programs/leadership-in-history-awards-2/or contact IL state captain Amanda Bryden at amanda.bryden@illinois.gov or 217-782-7440. All organizations that have produced a history-related exhibit, program, or project in the past 18 months are eligible.