Newsletter: April 2008
Society for Medical Anthropology
Kathleen Ragsdale, Contributing Editor
Mark Your Calendar! SMA 2008 Award Competition Deadlines
Eileen Basker Memorial Prize
SMA welcomes nominations for the 2008 Basker Prize for a significant contribution to excellence in research on gender and health by scholars from any discipline or nation, for a specific book, article, film or exceptional PhD thesis produced within the preceding three years. Some previous recipients of the Basker Prize include Sophie Day (2007), Michele Rivkin-Fish (2006), João Biehl (2005), Sandra Morgen (2004), and Caroline Bledsoe and Fatoumatta Banja (2003). For details, contact Carolyn Sargent (csargent@smu.edu), Basker Prize Committee Chair, or visit www.medanthro.net/awards/basker.html. Deadline: June 30, 2008.
Career Achievement Award
The Career Achievement Award honors an individual who has advanced the field of medical anthropology through career-long contributions to theory or method, and who has been successful in communicating the relevance of medical anthropology to broader publics. Nominations for the award should include a letter of nomination, an additional supporting letter, a biographical statement by the nominee and the candidate’s current CV. Send materials to Alan Harwood (Chair of the Selection Committee), Department of Anthropology, University of Massachusetts, Boston, MA 02125. For more information, visit www.medanthro.net/awards/career.html. Deadline: September 1, 2008.
New Millennium Book Award
The New Millennium Book Award, first given in 2006, recognizes an author whose work is judged to be the most significant and potentially influential contribution to medical anthropology in recent years. Books of exceptional courage and potential impact beyond the field are given special consideration. Solo-authored (or coauthored) books published or copyrighted between 2005 and 2008 are eligible. The previous recipients of this award are Sharon Kaufman (2007) and Adriana Petryna (2006). For details, contact Carolyn Smith-Morris (csmorris@smu.edu), New Millennium Book Award Committee Chair, or visit www.medanthro.net/awards/millenium.html. Deadline: June 30, 2008.
George Foster Practicing Medical Anthropology Award
The Foster Award, first given in 2005, recognizes those who have made significant contributions to applying theory and methods in medical anthropology (particularly in diverse contexts), to multidisciplinary audiences and with some impact on policy. Past recipients include Susan Hunter (2007), Spero Manson (2006) and Merrill Singer (2005). For details, contact Kitty Corbett (kcorbett@sfu.ca), Career Achievement Award Selection Committee Chair, or visit www.medanthro.net/awards/practicing.html. Deadline: September 1, 2008.
Steven Polgar Prize
The Steven Polgar Prize is awarded to a medical anthropologist for the best paper published in the SMA’s journal Medical Anthropology Quarterly (MAQ) during the most recent complete volume year, and carries a $500 cash award. No nominations are needed, as articles published in MAQ by eligible recipients are automatically considered.
MASA Dissertation Award
The MASA Dissertation Award is given to a scholar whose dissertation is judged to be the most significant and potentially influential contribution to medical anthropology. Dissertations are judged on the basis of: (1) scope and excellence of scholarship, including ethnographic research; (2) originality of subject matter; (3) effectiveness and persuasiveness of arguments; and (4) writing quality. Dissertation research of exceptional courage and difficulty is given special consideration. For details, contact Lenore Manderson (lenore.manderson@med.monash.edu.au) or visit www.medanthro.net/awards/dissertation.html. Deadline: July 1, 2008.
MASA Graduate Student Mentor Award
This award recognizes excellence in graduate student mentorship, and is aimed at senior or mid-career scholars who have demonstrated an ongoing commitment to teaching and mentorship throughout their careers, particularly those who have taken the time to successfully guide their MA and PhD students through field work and the thesis or dissertation writing process. Previous recipients of the MASA Graduate Student Mentor Award are Lenore Manderson (2007) and Mac Marshall (2006). For details, contact Amorita Valdez (aevaldez@umich.edu) or visit www.medanthro.net/awards/mentoring.html. Deadline: June 1, 2008.
Margaret Clark Graduate Award and Undergraduate Award
Named in honor of Margaret Clark for her pioneering and multidisciplinary study of sociocultural gerontology and medical anthropology, the Association for Anthropology and Gerontology (AAGE) invites students in all fields to submit unpublished papers related to lifespan or aging issues to the Annual Margaret Clark Award competition. The AAGE review panel awards a $500 graduate prize and $250 undergraduate prize, and publishes a summary in its newsletter. For details, contact Mark Luborsky (ab8592@wayne.edu), Margaret Clark Committee Chair, or visit www.medanthro.net/awards/clark.html. Deadline: June 1, 2008.
Hughes Graduate Prize and Rivers Undergraduate Prize
The Charles Hughes Graduate Student Paper Prize is given for the best paper in medical anthropology written by a graduate student, and the WHR Rivers Undergraduate Student Paper Prize is awarded for the best paper written by an undergraduate student. For details on the Rivers and Hughes prizes, contact Lenore Manderson (Lenore.Manderson@med.monash.edu.au) or visit www.medanthro.net/awards/polgar.html/. Deadline for each: June 1, 2008.
Please send contributions to the SMA Contributing Editor Kathleen Ragsdale (kathleen.ragsdale@ssrc.msstate.edu).