Herford Dissertation Prize Nomination Period Open

Each year the Julius Herford Prize Subcommittee of the Research and Publications Committee accepts nominations for the outstanding doctoral terminal research project in choral music. Projects are eligible if they comprise the principal research component of the degree requirements, whether the institution defines the project as a “dissertation,” “document,” “thesis,” or “treatise,” etc. The submitted projects are evaluated entirely blind with regard to dissertator, assisting faculty, institution, or any other identifying material, by an unpaid panel of choral conductor-scholars.

When a dissertation may be nominated: The year 2023 indicates the year in which the relevant doctoral degree was conferred.

Dissertations must be nominated in the calendar year following the year in which the degree was conferred. The prize is awarded in the calendar year following the year of nomination. Thus, the dissertation of a student with a 2023 degree can be nominated through June 10, 2024; the prize will be awarded at the 2025 ACDA national conference.

The award: The winner will receive a $1000 cash prize and a plaque. The committee reserves the right to award two prizes or no prizes in any given year.

Nomination Requirements and Procedure:

1. An institution may submit only one document for that year’s prize. In the event that there are two nominations of equal merit from one school, the letter from the Dean, Director, or Chair of the music school (described below) must justify the additional nomination. The submitting faculty member, institution, and/or the writer must be currently a member of ACDA in good standing.

2. Links to the nomination form and instructions for uploading the dissertation are found on the prize webpage: visit acda.org; under “About,” select “Award & Competitions.” OR, visit https://forms.gle/2MUmUmCxuRw7a3J7A.

The nomination form will require the following uploads:

• PDF abstract of the dissertation WITHOUT any material identifying the student, faculty, or institution.
• PDF title page of the dissertation WITH identifying information, including the dissertator’s name and institution.
• PDF of a signed letter from the dean, director, or chair of the music school of recommendation. Letters from the chair of the choral area are not acceptable. The letter must include the following: (1) the full name of the student, (2) the year in which that student’s degree was granted, and (3) the full title of the dissertation.
• PDF page with contact information (full name, title, mailing address, email address, telephone number) for (1) the faculty member making the submission and (2) the dissertation author.
• PDF of the complete dissertation WITHOUT any material identifying the student, faculty, or institution. The information can be removed or blacked out.

3. The dissertation and all accompanying materials must be uploaded by June 10, 2024, noon CST. If one or more of these requirements is not met, the dissertation will be eliminated from consideration.

Questions? Amanda Bumgarner, Publications Editor,