Richmond President Edward L. Ayers to receive Boyer Award for significant contributions to higher education

January 22, 2014

The New American Colleges and Universities (NAC&U) will present its  Ernest L. Boyer Award to University of Richmond President Edward L. Ayers Jan. 23 during the annual meeting of the Association of American Colleges and Universities in Washington. 

The award is presented to an individual who has made significant contributions to higher education. NAC&U is a consortium of small- to medium-size independent colleges and universities dedicated to the integration of liberal education, professional studies and civic engagement.

President of Richmond since 2007, Ayers has authored 10 books on the American South and is the recipient of numerous honors and awards, including the National Medal for the Humanities, awarded by President Obama at the White House in 2013. He has also won the Bancroft Prize for distinguished writing in American history and the Beveridge Prize for the best book in English on the history of the Americas since 1492, as well being named a finalist for both the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize. He is also a co-host of “BackStory,” a nationally syndicated radio show that ties history to the present day.

Ayers has been a pioneer in digital scholarship beginning with his work on “The Valley of the Shadow” project, an in-depth analysis of life in both a Northern and Southern town during the Civil War. He continues to support digital scholarship through Richmond’s Digital Scholarship Lab.

“I am honored to be associated with the legacy of Ernest Boyer, who allowed us to see the many possibilities of the academy’s great tradition of scholarship, and of the organization carrying on his work,” said Ayers. 

Boyer advocated and wrote about the concept of scholarship and community, urging that research and academic work needed to extend beyond the campus and connect across disciplines. His extensive contributions in the area of undergraduate education gave rise to what now is The New American Colleges and Universities.

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