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An Overview

The Forum Prize recognizes outstanding contributions to public engagement made by works about the ancient Greek and Roman world that have originated outside of the academy. The Forum Prize empowers the SCS to build bridges with a broader public by rewarding the best public-facing essay, book, poem, article, podcast, film, or other piece produced each year, either by a classicist or by a nonclassicist.

The Committee on Public Information and Media Relations will award “The Society for Classical Studies Forum Prize” annually in one of the following categories:

  • Nonfiction (including podcasts);
  • Fiction (including podcasts);
  • Visual art and multimedia (film, TV, plastic arts, etc.)

The Forum Prize will consist of (1) a cash award of $500, (2) a five-year membership in the Friends of the Classics membership category, and (3) an inscribed gift from the Society. The PIMR Committee will invite the Forum Prize winner to the SCS Annual Meeting to be part of a public awards ceremony.

Eligibility and Nominations

Nominated contributions, completed during the 2019, 2020, 2021, or 2022 calendar year, are restricted neither to the English language nor to North America. There is no fee associated with a nomination. Self-nominations are welcome. Please nominate for the Outreach Prize (https://classicalstudies.org/awards-and-fellowships/scs-outreach-prize) instead any eligible work that has arisen within the academy.

Please note that the Forum Prize and the Outreach Prize each will be awarded only to works that have not infringed upon the intellectual property of others. For further information in this regard, please see the SCS Guidelines on Podcasting and Copyrighted Materials and also the SCS resource on using images in teaching and publication.

In 2023, the Forum Prize nomination period will run from October 1 to October 31, and while nominations can be submitted at any time, no nominations will be considered until October 2023. You can find the nomination form here.

All nominations will be submitted via Google form and include a concise statement (limited to 250 words) explaining why and how, in the nominator’s opinion, the work engages with the public in terms of creativity, outreach, impact, relevance, diversity, vision, and/or timeliness.

When the nomination period closes, the PIMR Committee will usually determine the winner within one month.

Previous Winners

  • 2019 - Jeff Wright
  • 2020 - prize not awarded
  • 2021 - prize not awarded
  • 2022 - prize not awarded