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I. Purpose
The Awards Committee has four major purposes:
II. Committee Selection, Size, and Length of Terms
The Awards Committee is composed of two committee co-chairs and the chairs of each of the awards subcommittees.
Annually the vice president/president-elect appoints one Awards Committee co-chair, who serves for one year as junior co-chair and one year as senior co-chair.
The selection, size, and length of term of each subcommittee is determined by the Council, and may be modified by the Council. Generally subcommittees comprise three members, Annually, the vice president /president elect appoints one subcommittee member who will serve for three years, including as subcommittee chair in the third year of the term. Four subcommittees shall select the following awards:
Contributions to the Archives Profession Awards Subcommittee
SAA Members representing the Society of Southwest Archivists, the Diversity Committee, and the Reference, Access, and Outreach Section will be invited to volunteer for appointment to this subcommittee.
Writing and Publishing Awards Subcommittee
SAA members representing the Description Section, the Preservation Section, the Committee on Education, and American Archivist will be invited to volunteer for appointment to this subcommittee.
Travel Awards and Student Scholarships Subcommittee
SAA members representing the General Commission on Archives and History of the United Methodist Church, the Diversity Committee, the Archivists and Archives of Color Section, and the Archival Educators Section will be invited to volunteer for appointment to this subcommittee.
Fellows Awards Subcommittee
This subcommittee shall be composed of SAA Fellows only.
Mid-term vacancies will be filled on a rolling basis by the Awards Committee co-chairs in conjunction with SAA staff and appointed by the vice president/president-elect.
III. Reporting Procedures
Awards are announced before the SAA Annual Meeting, on the SAA website, and in the newsletter. The co-chairs represent the Committee when meeting with other SAA committees and with the SAA Council and staff.
IV. Duties and Responsibilities
The Awards Committee publicizes SAA awards through announcements in the SAA newsletter and in other publications as appropriate. It also may publicize the awards during SAA Annual Meetings or conduct other activities to make archivists more aware of SAA awards. The Committee also solicits nominations for SAA awards by contacting individuals, archives organizations, and other groups that may be aware of worthy nominees.
The Committee establishes a deadline for award nominations to be sent to the committee chair. The Awards co-chairs distribute nominations to the appropriate subcommittee. Each subcommittee evaluates nominations it receives on the basis of written criteria and selects award winner(s) as appropriate. Policy questions regarding criteria or eligibility for an award may be directed to the Awards co-chairs, the SAA Executive Director, or the Council for clarification.
From time to time, the Committee reviews the award criteria and procedures and recommends any appropriate revisions. The Committee may recommend new awards for the Council's consideration. The Committee also evaluates awards and changes to guidelines proposed by members of the Society and makes recommendations to the Council concerning the proposals. Should new awards be approved, the Awards Committee is responsible for drafting appropriate award criteria and procedures.
V. Meetings
The Committee meets as part of SAA's annual component group meeting cycle.
Approved by the SAA Council: June 1988
Revised: January 1993, January 2007, August 2011 February 2025, February 2026
See also