The William and Edwyna Gilbert Award for the Best Article on Teaching History annually recognizes outstanding contributions to the teaching of history through the publication of articles in journals, magazines, and other serials.
The current prize amount is $1,000 each to the author and journal.
Eligibility
Articles with a publication date of 2024 are eligible for consideration for the 2025 award. Authors must be members of the AHA. Both the author of the winning article and the journal that publishes it will each receive the award. Journals and individual members may submit nominations on the teaching of history (including scholarship of teaching and learning, methodology and theory of pedagogy). Journals, magazines, and other serials can submit up to two articles for each award cycle.
Application Process
Log into your MY AHA account at www.historians.org/myaha and click “Available Application Forms” in the AHA Awards, Grants, and Jobs section. If you don’t have an account, create one for free at www.historians.org/createaccount. If nominating someone else, select the Nominate button and search for the nominee’s existing record or create a new record.
- Fill in the application form, which includes the nominee’s contact information and the names of additional nominees (if group nomination).
- Upload an Application Packet as a single PDF. Include the following documents:
- Letter of support (up to 2 pages)
- Copy of the article
Please Note: The competition will open in mid-March. Entries must be received by May 15, 2025, to be eligible for the 2025 competition. Entries will not be returned. Recipients will be announced on the AHA website in October 2025 and recognized during a ceremony at the January 2026 AHA annual meeting in Chicago.
For questions, please contact the Prize Administrator.
William and Edwyna Gilbert
Originally the “William Gilbert Award,” named in memory of William Gilbert, a longtime AHA member and distinguished scholar-teacher of the Renaissance at the University of Kansas, it was renamed the William and Edwyna Gilbert Award in 2012 after Edwyna Gilbert passed away and left additional funds to supplement the original bequest for the award.
Past Recipients
Current Recipient
Jocelyn Isabel Aguilera, John C. Fremont High School and California State University, Long Beach
“Reclaiming Narratives through Culturally Sustaining Teaching: Women of Color, Historical Significance, and the Civil Rights Era,” The History Teacher 56, no. 3 (May 2023)
One obstacle many minoritized and female students face in the secondary school history classroom is the inability to see themselves in history. Jocelyn Isabel Aguilera’s article explores an intervention designed to draw students into a deeper historical understanding of the role played by African American women in the Civil Rights Movement. Aguilera’s pedagogy was not simply aimed at including new content but in using that content to engage students in deeper historical thinking and to encourage them to take a more activist stance.