Iris Molotsky Award for Excellence in Coverage of Higher Education

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Information and Application Form

In 1970 the AAUP established a Higher Education Writers Award, which was presented for outstanding interpretive reporting on higher education. The award was presented annually until 1986, when its presentation was suspended. Because of AAUP’s strong belief in the importance of providing the public regularly with reliable and informed information about higher education issues, the Association is again offering the award, renamed the Iris Molotsky Award for Excellence in Coverage of Higher Education. Ms Molotsky served as the AAUP’s Director of Public Information for 19 years.

The purpose of the award is to recognize and stimulate coverage of higher education nationally and to encourage thoughtful and comprehensive reporting of higher education issues. The AAUP Award is given for outstanding coverage of higher education exhibiting analytical and investigative reporting. Entries will be judged on the basis of their relevance to issues confronting higher education.

Entries for the award must have been published between January 1 and December 31 of the prior year. Entries may be single articles or a series, but editorials and columns will not be considered for the award.

Submissions may be made by media organizations or employees. Applicants may be self-nominating. Each application must be accompanied by an entry form. Download information and the application form. (.pdf)

Entries must be postmarked by April 15.

Please contact Robin Burns at the AAUP's Washington office for more information.

1970 Ronald J. Maselka, Buffalo Evening Times
1971 John Crowl, Chronicle of Higher Education
1972 William Trombley, Los Angeles Times
1973 Edward Weidlein, Chronicle of Higher Education
1974 Philip Semas, Chronicle of Higher Education
1975 Eric Wentworth, Washington Post
1976 William Braden and Andrew Shaw, Chicago Sun – Times
1977 Larry Van Dyne, Chronicle of Higher Education
1978 Edward Fisk and Gene Maeroff, New York Times
1979 Cynthia Parsons, Christian Science Monitor
1980 Rosemary Frawley and Charles Reid, Tampa Tribune
1981 Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Harper’s Magazine
1982 Larry Van Dyne, Washington Magazine
1983 William Boly, California Magazine
1984 Bill Barol, Newsweek on Campus
1985 Jonathan Harr, New England Monthly and
Sally McDonald and Lee Moriwaki, Seattle Times
1986 Dawn Ruth, New Orleans Times – Picayne States Item
1989 Larry Gordon, Los Angeles Times
1990 Roger Flaherty, Chicago Sun Times
1991 Time Fleck, Houston Press and
Pat Meison, Baltimore Sun
1992 Jennifer Hyman, Democrat and Chronicle (Rochester, NY)
1993 A. L. Starnes, The Purdue Exponent
1994 Tom Philip and Lisa Lapin, The Sacramento Bee
1995 Philip Walzer, The Virginia – Pilot
1996 Angie Muhs, Lexington Herald – Leader
1997 Alice Dembner, Boston Globe
1998 Ernie Suggs, Herald – Sun
1999 Scott Wright, Community College Weekly
2000 Aaron Bernstein, Business Week
2001 Iris Molotsky, in appreciation for 19 years of service to AAUP
2002 Mark Clayton, Christian Science Monitor
2003 Seth Rosenfeld, San Francisco Chronicle
2004 Karen Rivedal, Wisconsin State Journal
2005 Bernard Wysocki, Wall Street Journal
2006 Ralph K. M. Haurwitz and Laura Heinauer, Austin American-Statesman
2007 Jodi Upton, Steve Wieberg, Michael McCarthy, Steve Berkowitz, and Kelly Whiteside; USA Today
2008 John Hechinger and Rebecca Buckman; Wall Street Journal
2009 Gadi Dechter, Baltimore Sun
2011     Beryl Lieff Benderly, Miller-McCune
2012 Daniel Golden and Oliver Staley, Bloomberg News
2013 Jacqueline Rabe Thomas, Keith Phaneuf, and Mark Pazniokas of the Connecticut Mirror
Janese Silvey, formerly of the Columbia Daily Tribune