Awards
The NEHTA sponsors four recognition awards, each given annually. To learn more or nominate an individual for an award, please follow the information provided below.
The Kidger Awards
First awarded in 1952, the Kidger Awards are given each year to one college or university faculty member and one pre-college history teacher for excellence in teaching, research and writing, and service to the profession. The award honors Horace Kidger, a teacher in the Newton School and at Harvard who served as secretary for the NEHTA for a period spanning the two World Wars and some forty years.
Recent recipients have included David Brion Davis (Yale), Jill Lepore (Harvard), David Blight (Yale), James M. McPherson (Princeton), Kevin O’Reilly (Hamilton-Wenham Regional High School), Charles L. Newhall (St. John’s Preparatory School), and Mark C. Williams (Loomis Chaffee School).
Please click on the following link for the criteria and nomination form: NEHTA K-12 Kidger Award Criteria & Nomination Form
The Laska Award
First awarded in 2005, the Laska Award is a cash award given to an undergraduate with a declared major in history with a focus in United States History who is attending a college or university in New England to be used to further the recipient’s study of United States History. The award is named for the late well known History Professor, Dr. Vera Laska, a Kidger Award winner, and her husband Andrew J. Laska, who was a successful businessman.
For more information about Vera Laska's life and experiences in the Holocaust, read this biography from the Shoah Foundation: Vera Laska, Political Prisoner - The Power of Resistance
The next deadline for applications is April 1, 2024. Please see the following attachment for more details: Laska Award Nomination Form.
The Vera Laska Book Award
DEADLINE: SUBMISSIONS MUST BE POSTMARKED BY DECEMBER 30, 2023
The Vera Laska Book Award is given annually by the NEHTA to the author who best furthers our understanding of resistance movements and/or women around the world.
Submission Process
To qualify, each book entry must be published during the calendar year of January 1, 2023 through December 31, 2023. Books must be mailed directly to each committee member and clearly state the intent of applying for the Vera Laska Award. All submissions must be postmarked by December 30, 2023. Contact chair Linda Morse at info@nehta.org for addresses of book review committee members. Should it be necessary for bound page proofs to be used for publications after December 1, each committee member must receive a copy of the text postmarked by January 10, 2024.
Date of the award presentation will be during the Spring of 2024.
National History Day Awards
These awards are given to student-historians whose research and entries on New England topics excel at state History Day contests across the six New England states.
The Hicks-Kennedy Award
This award is given in recognition of noteworthy and outstanding service to our organization.
