These may relate to medicine, technology, and the social sciences as well as the natural sciences. The book or article must have been published no more than four years before the year of award (thus, works published in 1997, 1998, 1999, or 2000 were eligible for the 2001 competition; the Library of Congress is the ultimate reference to establish eligibility). Awards should not be made posthumously, except in a case where the nominee dies after being nominated. These nominees may be considered only in the year in which they were nominated, and such a nomination may not be carried over to the next year. Books that members of the committee have written or edited, in whole or in part, are ineligible for consideration until such time as those persons are no longer members of the committee. No prize may be split between two winners. Only nominations from the previous year¹s short list are automatically carried over for subsequent years.

For book years: From the long list (all nominated titles), a short list of 10-15 books should be drawn up by mid-April. Committee chairs should then divide up the short-listed titles among committee members to determine which books should be ordered ­ the order list. Some books can be eliminated from the outset, though some may fall into a dubious category until they can be skimmed. The Executive Office is responsible for contacting publishers to request copies of the books from the short list, giving publishers a deadline of June 1, after which books may not receive full consideration. Each committee member should keep a log of each book as it arrives, and the chair should contact the Executive Office with updates regarding missing books in May and June. Additional notices may be sent at this time and the authors of books can be contacted as well. The committee should establish a finalist list of approximately 3-5 books by early July. Books are typically nominated from the HSS membership at large, and the deadline for nominations is April 1. Most nominations are received in the Executive Office and forwarded to the committee chair; however, committee members may also make their own nominations. Only nominations from the previous year¹s short list are automatically carried over for subsequent years.

For article years: From the long list of all nominated essays, a short list of about 10-15 articles should be drawn up by mid-April. Some articles can be eliminated from the outset due to subject matter, length, etc. The nomination deadline is April 1, and most nominations are received in the Executive Office and forwarded to the committee chair; however, committee members may also make their own nominations. The Executive Office is responsible for making all articles available to the committee members, preferably via electronic means.

For a description of the Rossiter Prize , see the end of this message or:
http://www.hssonline.org/about/society_rossiter.html

To submit a nomination on line:
http://www.hssweb.org/nominations/