ABS Awards for Distinguished Scholarship

Terms of Reference and Call for Nominations

The Association for Bahá’í Studies – North America (ABS) Endowment Fund was established in 2007 by anonymous donors. The purpose of the endowment is to recognize the accomplishment of contributions to Bahá’í scholarship. All fields of Bahá’í scholarship may be considered for this award but preference will be given to scholarly work that correlates the Bahá’í teachings with contemporary issues. The award is intended to stimulate and encourage research in Bahá’í studies.

Nominations will be invited from Association members annually (see below). Awards are made on the basis of demonstrated excellence in generating Bahá’í scholarship and the names of the recipients will be announced at the Annual Conference of the Association. Both awards have an associated monetary value determined annually by the Executive Committee of the Association for Bahá’í Studies.

• The first award will recognize the publication of a major study that advances our collective understanding of the Bahá’í teachings and, where appropriate, that correlates Bahá’í teachings to contemporary issues. Books will have to have already been published or been accepted for publication. In the latter case a letter from the publisher is required attesting that the book has been accepted and giving an expected date of publication. This award will be designated as the Association for Bahá’í Studies – North America Award for Distinguished Scholarship, Book Category (ABS Book Award)

• The second award will recognize the work of a graduate student who has recently completed a graduate thesis. The student will already have graduated or his/her thesis been accepted for graduation. In the latter case, a letter from the supervisor or the person responsible for Graduate Studies is required attesting that the thesis has been accepted and indicating the date of graduation. This award will be designated as the Association for Bahá’í Studies – North America Award for Distinguished Scholarship Graduate, Thesis Category (ABS Thesis Award)

In both cases, while at levels necessarily different, the works being considered for the awards will represent significant contributions to knowledge in the field of Bahá’í Studies.

Awards will be adjudicated by the Awards Adjudication Committee appointed by the Executive Committee of the Association for Bahá’í Studies. The Executive Committee will review and approve the recommendation of the Adjudication Committee.

Calls For Nomination:

The Association for Bahá’í Studies – North America invites nominations for each of the two awards created under the auspices of the Association for Bahá’í Studies – North America Endowment Fund: the Association for Bahá’í Studies – North America Award for Distinguished Scholarship, Book Category (ABS Book Award) and the Association for Bahá’í Studies – North America Award for Distinguished Scholarship Graduate, Thesis Category (ABS Thesis Award).

All nominations will provide the following documentation:

• A cover letter outlining the reasons for making the nomination. The cover letter should not be more than two pages long.
• A copy of the published book or of the bound thesis.
• In the case of a book having not yet been published but having been accepted for publication, a letter from the publisher confirming that the book has been accepted for publication and indicating the date of publication.
• In the case of a graduate student having yet to convocate but his/her thesis having been accepted for graduation, a letter from the supervisor or from the person responsible for Graduate Studies attesting that the thesis has been accepted and indicating the date of convocation.
• A resume of the nominee’s curriculum vitae stressing both salient academic and service activities. The resume should not be more than one page.

Nominations with accompanying documentation should be sent to Association for Bahá’í Studies – North America, attention Academic Director, Centre for Bahá’í Studies, 34 Copernicus Street, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1N 7K4. Nominations can be emailed at abs-na@bahai-studies.ca or faxed at 613-233-3644 with supporting documents to follow by regular mail or courier.

Nominations should be received at the Centre for Bahá’í Studies by January 30, 2012, at the latest. Any applications received after this date will not be considered. Please note that no material will be returned to the person or persons submitting the nomination. Pending unforeseen events, the Adjudication Committee will make its recommendation to the Executive Committee by May 15 and the recipients will be informed soon after. The names of the recipients will be announced at the annual conference of the Association for Bahá’í Studies and recipients attending the conference will be presented with the awards at that time.