The Sidney Prize is a monthly award for outstanding investigative journalism that exposes social and economic injustices. Winners are honored at the Society’s Triennial Council meetings and their work is announced in the Key Reporter, the General Newsletter and social media. Nominations are solicited each year beginning in April. The Society also awards the Philip Sidney Ardern Memorial Prize, named in honor of the late Professor Ardern who was a long-time member of Sidney and an internationally distinguished scholar in the study of Old and Middle English literature.
The 2020 Sidney Lanier Prize for Southern Literature has been awarded to Elizabeth Spencer, a writer of fiction and nonfiction. The award is presented by Mercer University’s Spencer B. King Center for Southern Studies. “Spencer has made a significant contribution to Southern literary tradition through her masterful technique and fearlessness in challenging social conventions while elevating artistic standards,” the Lanier Prize Committee said.
This year, the Overland Neilma Sidney Short Story Prize was supported by the Malcolm Robertson Foundation. The prize was open to all writers, nationally and internationally, regardless of age or stage in their writing careers. Submissions were blindly judged by a panel of three judges. The judges selected a shortlist of eight stories and chose the winner from among them. Two runners-up were also chosen.
Winners will receive $500 and their short story will be published in Overland. A free copy of the winning story will be mailed to each of the shortlisted authors. In addition, Overland will publish an excerpt from the winning story on our website and in our 2024 print issue.
“These titles take familiar topics and explore them in new and thought-provoking ways,” said Aviva Rosenberg, Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee chair. The committee congratulates all the finalists and winners. See the complete list of AJL Sydney Taylor Book Award winners on the AJL website, including reviews and author interviews.
The Sidney Hillman Foundation is a left-of-center organization that annually awards monetary prizes for journalism and public service. It was established in 1946 and named for former president of the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America labor union, a predecessor to Unite Here, Workers United and SEIU. The Hillman Foundation is helmed by a board of directors that includes prominent union leaders and celebrities such as Danny Glover.
In its mission to promote the importance of liberal arts education, The Sidney Hillman Foundation also awards the annual Sidney Hillman Prize for Scholarship in the Humanities and Social Sciences to outstanding Phi Beta Kappa undergraduates for their achievements in the humanities and social sciences, and for the work they are doing in their fields. The foundation also sponsors the U.S Hillman Prize for Journalism on Racial and Economic Justice.
Nominations are accepted from all members and must be received by the Society no later than January 15, 2025. The award is announced at the Society’s Triennial Council meeting in June and is published in the Key Reporter and the General Newsletter.
