Established in 1986, the Eugene Asher Distinguished Teaching Award recognizes outstanding teaching and advocacy for history teaching at two-year, four-year, and graduate colleges and universities.
The Society for History Education shares the sponsorship of the award. The current prize amount is $1,000.
Eligibility
The award is intended for inspiring teachers whose techniques and mastery of subject matter made a real difference to students of history. Nominations of mentors or teaching colleagues are appropriate. An individual may not nominate his or her graduate thesis or dissertation adviser (current or within the past five years). At the time of nomination, a nominee must still be alive but may be retired or emeritus.
Application Process
Log into your MY AHA account at 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 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.
- Upload an Application Packet as a single PDF. Include the following documents:
- CV (up to 5 pages) highlighting educational experience, teaching, and advocacy of the nominee
- Selected syllabus (or syllabi) of the nominee
- Nomination letters (up to 5 letters, no more than 2 pages each). These letters can be from former students, colleagues, and others. Individuals organizing nominations should solicit a cross selection as appropriate to address the nominee’s outstanding teaching and advocacy. The letters can be included in the application packet or solicited through the application form.
Generally, one individual serves as the organizer for the nomination, writes one of the letters nominating the individual, procures the nominee’s syllabus and CV (condenses to 5-page limit as necessary), and contacts individuals to write additional letters of support. Self nominations are welcome.
Please Note: The competition will open in mid-March 2026. Entries must be received by May 15, 2026, to be eligible for the 2026 competition. Entries will not be returned. Recipients will be announced on the AHA website in October 2026 and recognized during a ceremony at the January 2027 AHA annual meeting in New Orleans.
For questions, please contact the Prize Administrator.
Eugene Asher
The award is named for the late Eugene Asher (1929–88), for many years a leading advocate for history teaching. At the time of his death, he was executive assistant to the president and director of university relations at California State University, Long Beach. Asher was a figure well known in scholarly and teaching circles since the time of his employment at California State University, Long Beach, in 1959.
Past Recipients
Current Recipient
Andria Crosson, University of Texas at San Antonio
Andria Crosson’s teaching journey has led her from lecturer I to professor of practice at the University of Texas at San Antonio. Her syllabi showcase a variety of tasks meant to support her student population—often first-generation and bilingual college students—in understanding not just the content of history but how to be a historian. In teaching the capstone course to preservice teachers, Crosson has sought to help her department—and her students—by seeking additional certifications that expand course delivery modality. Moreover, the websites and materials Crosson collaborated on in the Seeds of Texas project further emphasize the skills and modalities she brings to the work of teaching history. Andria Crosson is truly deserving of recognition as a distinguished teacher.