William Holmes McGuffey Longevity Awards

Text and Academic Authors created the McGuffey longevity awards in 1993 to recognize textbooks and learning materials whose excellence has been demonstrated over time. To be nominated, a work must have been in print 15 years and still be selling. TAA designed the McGuffeys, as well as the Texty awards, because text materials did not have awards of their own.

The awards bear the name of William Holmes McGuffey, whose influential primers, which first appeared in 1836, helped bring the United States out of frontier illiteracy. McGuffey's Eclectic Readers, usually called simply McGuffey's Readers, were in print until 1921. Today they remain available in commemorative editions. There are eight academic subject categories for the McGuffeys:

• Accounting, business and economics.
• Communication, education and performing and visual arts.
• Computer science and engineering.
• Humanities and social sciences.
• Languages and literature.
• Life sciences.
• Math and stats.
• Physical sciences.

Judges consider making one award per category per year.

College and el-hi books are judged separately. If there are college and el-hi entries in all eight categories, there is the potential for 16 McGuffeys to be awarded each year -- eight in the college division and eight in the el-hi division. If there are no entries in a category, there are fewer awards. Judges may decide no entries in a category deserve an award.

McGuffey Awards are presented at the TAA Awards Ceremony, held during the association’s annual conference in June. Authors and co-authors of each winning text, as well as the book’s editor or publisher, receive a beautiful leather bookmark embossed with the McGuffey logo and the recipients’ name and year. Those not present are mailed their award after the conference. Authors or publishers can purchase silver Texty and McGuffey seals to place on their textbooks or promotional materials for a nominal fee. Also, the McGuffey logo can be reproduced by the publisher for use in marketing materials.

McGuffey entries are nominated by publishers, not the authors. An author can make the initial inquiry and "get the ball rolling," but it must be the publisher who does the nomination. The publisher submits six copies of the work and any ancillary and supplemental materials to TAA headquarters for judging. The publisher pays a $300 nomination fee to help offset TAA's costs.

Judges are veteran authors in appropriate subject areas. Entries are judged by no fewer than three but usually five judges. Members of their panel of judges who have a directly competing work are asked to sit out.

TAA issues news releases on the awards to journals and publications and to other media outlets designated by each winner.

The deadline for the nomination form and fee is October 15th. The deadline for TAA to receive the books and any ancillaries and supplements for judging purposes is November 15th. These deadlines are somewhat flexible when dates fall on weekends.

McGuffey Awards
2009 Author Nomination Form
2009 Publisher Nomination Form