The American Printing History Association (APHA) Board of Trustees and the Awards Committee invite nominations for the 2024 APHA Individual Laureate and Institutional Awards! Submit your nomination(s) at our new form now until September 13, 2023.  

These prestigious awards, which celebrate outstanding contributions to the history of printing, are presented each January at APHA’s Annual Meeting. Awardee speeches have historically stood as important statements of philosophy, accomplishment, and the value of printing history and the book arts.

A list of our previous awardees, brief biographical sketches, photographs from past ceremonies, and select acceptance speeches can be viewed on the APHA website Awards page.

Nominations are welcome from individuals at all stages of their chosen professions. Nominations submitted on behalf of APHA Chapters are likewise encouraged.

Letters of support (no more than six maximum) may come from others with knowledge of the nominee. Supporting documents should follow the nomination guidelines below, and carry the same submission deadline, September 13, 2023. 

Print and paper historians, collectors, educators, librarians and archivists, paper artists, printers, traditional papermakers, toolmakers, conservators and others, as well as college and university programs, nonprofits, social groups, and libraries and archives are all eligible for nomination.

Nominations are accepted by the American Printing History Association (APHA) Awards Committee beginning June 1 in any given year and may be submitted online at any time up until 12 noon EDT on September 13th.

Nominators may compose their nomination text using whatever software they prefer but please cut and paste it into the nomination form.

To nominate someone, fill out this form and click SUBMIT. (Nominations via postal mail or email will not be accepted.)

Questions or concerns may be addressed to the committee at awards@printinghistory.org

Guidelines and Requirements

1. You do not have to be a member of APHA to nominate someone. 
2. Nominations from APHA chapters are encouraged.
3. A nominee need not be a current member of APHA as long as their contribution to the field has been significant.
4. Posthumous nominations are encouraged.
5. Resubmitting a nomination from year to year is allowed.
6. Multiple nominations for the same individual(s) from different nominators are acceptable.
7. Multiple nominations for different individuals by the same nominator are acceptable.
8. Current Awards Committee members may not submit nominations, however, members of the APHA Board of Trustees may do so.
9. Current Awards Committee members or members of the Board may not be nominated.
10. No self-nominations.
11. Nominations from a previous year may be considered by the committee along with the pool of new nominations in the current year.

Procedure

The APHA Awards Committee reviews all nominations after the submission deadline (September 13), as well as any previously submitted nominations. The committee contacts nominees at this point, to ensure that they are willing to stand for nomination. The committee recommends honorees for the Board’s approval at a meeting on December 7, prior to the organization’s Annual meeting.

The field of nominations will include not only those received in this calendar year, but also all nominations received for the previous five awards nominations processes (e.g., 2024 nominees will include other nominated parties for 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, and 2019). The awards committee will submit their recommendations to the  APHA Board no later than October 20 of the current calendar year, for discussion at the October board meeting.

Thank you for your assistance in recognizing outstanding accomplishments in the history of printing. We look forward to your nominations!