Subcommittee on the CAMWS First Book Award - Charter

Classical Association of the Middle West and South

Subcommittee on the First Book Award Charter

 

 

This document sets forth the duties and responsibilities and governs the operations of the Subcommittee on the First Book Award (the “Subcommittee”) of the Classical Association of the Middle West and South (the “Association”).

 

I. Purpose

The Subcommittee’s purpose is to establish and maintain guidelines for nominations for the CAMWS First Book Award; to solicit nominations for the annual competition; and to evaluate submissions and determine the winner.

 

 

II. Membership and Meetings

Composition: The Subcommittee shall consist of five regular members appointed in accordance with the Association’s constitution.  Each member shall serve for a term of three years.  No member of the Subcommittee shall serve more than two terms consecutively.

Chair: The Chair of the Subcommittee shall be appointed in accordance with the Association’s constitution, and shall normally serve for a term of one year, which may be renewed for up to three years, and as a consequence may extend the Chair’s regular term of service on the Committee. 

Qualifications: There is an expectation that the Chair and members of the Subcommittee will have a record of scholarly accomplishment commensurate with the standards and expectations of the award.

Meetings: The business of the Subcommittee will normally be conducted over electronic media.

        

III. Duties and Responsibilities

Guidelines: The Subcommittee shall be responsible for establishing guidelines governing the submission of nominations for the Award.  These guidelines shall be consistent with the following provisions:

  • The award shall be for publication of a first scholarly book or monograph (or the digital equivalent) by a member of the Association in the field of classical studies broadly defined including, but at the Subcommittee’s discretion not limited to, the languages, literatures, history, religions, philosophy, art, architecture, archaeology, economy, and reception of Greek and Roman antiquity.  The recipient will normally be an early career scholar who has published the work within a reasonable period following the terminal degree.
  • Textbooks, anthologies, or works of a pedagogical nature will not be considered for this award, but should be submitted to the Subcommittee on the Bolchazy Award.  In cases where the eligibility of a nomination is in doubt, the Chairs of the two Subcommittees shall adjudicate.
  • The author of the nominated work shall be a member of the Association in good standing in the year of the nomination and for at least the previous year.
  • Nominations shall be sent to the Chair of the Subcommittee prior to the published deadline and shall consist of a letter of nomination affirming the author’s eligibility for the award and affirming that copies of the publication will be supplied for each Committee member.
  • Nominations may be made by any publisher or by any member of CAMWS in good standing, including the author.
  • Nominations will be accepted for works that have been published within three years prior to the announcement of the award (e.g., the competition for the 2015 award will include books published in 2012, 2013 and 2014).
  • The Subcommittee may, at its sole discretion, retain an unsuccessful nomination for consideration in the following year.

Solicitation: The Subcommittee shall be responsible for publishing its guidelines on the Association’s website or wherever else it deems appropriate for the purpose of soliciting nominations for the annual competition.

Judging: The Subcommittee shall act as sole judge in determining the winner of the annual award.  The Subcommittee will endeavor to determine the winner by consensus, but in the absence of a consensus will decide the winner by a simple majority vote.

Reports: The Chair of the Subcommittee shall be responsible for reporting the outcome of the annual competition to the Executive Committee and the Secretary-Treasurer at least six weeks prior to the Association’s annual meeting.  The Chair of the Subcommittee shall also be responsible for preparing a citation to accompany the award.  The award will be presented by the Chair of the Subcommittee or another member delegated by the Chair at the Association’s annual meeting.

 

 

IV. Amendment

This Charter shall not be amended except upon approval by the Executive Committee.

 

 

 

Adopted by the Executive Committee on June 13, 2013.