The Sidney Prize is an annual award for students who demonstrate loyalty to high ideals. It is offered by the Malcolm Robertson Foundation, and named in honor of its founder’s late brother, Sidney Louis Wagman ’51. The prize is awarded in dance, drama, music, opera, comedy, and more. Applicants are asked to answer one question, which is “If your entry takes up the voice or experience of a particular community or identity, do you identify as being part of that group? This question is not a requirement, but it is important for us to know in order to evaluate your submission.
Ron Rash, the John Parris Distinguished Professor of Appalachian Cultural Studies in the Department of English at Western Carolina University, has won a sidney prize and been named a finalist for two others. He has been a writer for more than 40 years and has published six collections of short stories, four novels and five poetry books.
He is also the author of a nonfiction book, The Coward’s Heart, and three plays. He has been the recipient of many other awards and fellowships, including the PEN/Faulkner Award for his novel Burning Bright. His poems have been nominated for the prestigious Frank O’Connor International Short Story Award and have appeared in The New York Times and the Best American Poetry 2022.
In addition to the Hillman Prize, the Sidney Foundation offers a monthly journalism prize called the SEIU Award for Journalism on Social Justice. The winner of the SEIU prize gets a $5,000 prize and is automatically considered for the Hillman Prize as well. All Hillman Prize entries are reviewed by a panel of judges.
AJL’s editorial staff also reviews finalists in 2024 for the Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award, which was established by the publisher to encourage aspiring authors of Jewish fiction for children ages 8-13. The winning manuscript receives a $1000 cash award. AJL also recommends the winning titles on its list of Outstanding Books for Young Readers and allows published books that have won the award to carry the Sydney Taylor seal.
The AJL list of recommended titles is available in the AJL shops. It is possible to purchase gold and silver Sydney Taylor seals for use on copies of books that have won the award. For more information, contact the Past Chair of the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee.
In addition to its regular publications and events, the Wittenberg East Asian Studies Journal is proud to offer the Sidney DeVere Brown Prize and Mikiso Hane Prize. These prizes are offered to undergraduate students who submit papers that are published in the journal. The paper must be composed by the student during their undergraduate years and accompanied by a letter from their professor or advisor stating that the paper was written while they were an undergraduate. The submission portal is open. The deadline for submissions is the end of April. The winner of each prize will be announced in mid-May.