Awards and Distinctions
The Society for the Study of Symbolic Interaction has five awards that are given to scholars and students to recognize particular achievements.
2025 Call for Award Nominations
George Herbert Mead Award
Charles Horton Cooley Book Award
Herbert Blumer Award for Best Graduate Student Paper
Helena Lopata Mentor Excellence Award
The Kathy Charmaz Early-In-Career Award
Nominations Due April 15, 2025
General requirements: materials for nominations should be submitted to the chair of the respective committee by the listed due date. The award winners will be publicly announced at the Annual Meetings in August, 2025. Winners must be members of the SSSI at the time the award is announced.
George Herbert Mead Award
The George Herbert Mead Award Committee is given annually to recognize a scholar’s career contribution to the field of symbolic interactionism. Decisions are made by a committee selected by the President of the Society.
Chair: Andrea Salvini - andrea.salvini@unipi.it
Committee: Christopher J. Schneider, Julie Wiest
Mead award nominations should include a letter of nomination from a current member of SSSI, two letters of support, and a current CV. Nominators will be advised when the Award Committee has made a recommendation to the President, but the actual name will not be announced until the annual General Meeting and will subsequently be posted online.
Charles Horton Cooley Book Award
The Society for the Study of Symbolic Interaction announces its call for nominations for the Charles Horton Cooley Book Award. This award is given annually to an author for a book that represents an important contribution to the perspective of symbolic interaction. To be eligible for the award, a nominated book should have a publication date between the three years preceding publication. Previously nominated works within this three-year publication period remain eligible but must be re-nominated.
Nomination deadline: March 15, 2025. Copies of the books must be received by the committee by the deadline. If you are submitting a nomination for the Cooley Award, please ensure that you contact the publisher as soon as possible to allow sufficient time for copies of the books to reach the committee. Electronic copies are permitted and are preferable where shipping will cause delays. Nominated books must have been published within the three preceding years of the award.
Chair: Thomas DeGloma- tdegloma@hunter.cuny.edu
Committee: Heather Shay, Douglas Smith
Herbert Blumer Award for Best Graduate Student Paper
Awarded to a graduate student paper; the paper may be published or unpublished. Papers should be submitted electronically to the chair of the committee. Self-nominations are accepted.
Chair: Michael O. Johnston - johnstonmo@wmpenn.edu
Committee: Jeffrey Parsells-Johnson, Lisa-Jo van den Scott
Helena Lopata Mentor Excellence Award
The relationship between a student and a faculty member can have a profound, lifelong influence on both parties. Likewise, established and accomplished teacher-scholars can serve equally influential and encouraging roles for junior colleagues and provide crucial support for early and midcareer transitions. In sum, the mentoring relationship inspires, gives confidence, and culminates in valuable collegial relationships. The effective mentor serves as advisor, teacher, advocate, and role model. The SSSI Helena Lopata Mentor Excellence Award recognizes these important contributions to our society and craft. Nominees must be members of SSSI to be eligible for this award. We seek nominees who show evidence of:
a sustained career as a beneficial role model;
a sustained record of mentoring students and junior colleagues in acquiring the skills and resources necessary for career success;
promoting successful and timely completion of students’ degree programs;
supporting attendance and participation at conferences;
imparting informed advice relating to career opportunities and choices;
establishing opportunities for networking and professional connections;
motivating students and junior colleagues about research and teaching activities;
helping students and junior colleagues develop a range of talents including skills in research, teaching, professional presentations, writing, preparation of grant and fellowship applications, etc.;
integrating students and junior colleagues into the broader culture of the SSSI.
All nominations should include (a) a letter of nomination and, (b) multiple letters of support, ideally from people with different mentoring relations with the candidate, that testify to a sustained career of outstanding mentorship.
Chair: Beth Montemurro - eam15@psu.edu
Committee: Stacey Hannem, Scott Harris
The Kathy Charmaz Early-In-Career Award
The SSSI Early-In-Career Award Committee recognizes junior scholars’ contributions to the field of symbolic interaction and potential. The award specifically honors those scholars who have made significant contributions within the first ten years since the completion of their PhDs. Nominations are made through support letters sent (by SSSI members) to the chair of the award committee. Support letters should include the following information: the candidate’s most noteworthy research and publications thus far; contributions to symbolic interaction; and the candidate’s CV.
Chair: Deana Simonetto – deana.simonetto@ubc.ca
Committee: Michael Ian Borer, J.E. Sumerau
SSSI Annual Meetings Distinguished Lecturers