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McGuffeys
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.
McGuffeys are presented at the annual TAA awards banquet which
closes out our annual convention in June. Each author, including
co-authors, receives a plaque, as does the editor or publisher.
Publishers may purchase silver Texty and McGuffey seals at a nominal
fee to use in promotional materials. 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 November 15th.
The deadline for TAA to receive the books and any ancillaries
and supplements for judging purposes is December 15th. These deadlines
are somewhat flexible when dates fall on weekends.
McGuffey Awards
2008 Publisher Nomination Form
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