John Cotton Dana Award — Lifetime achievement and exceptional service award

About this program

Offered by the Association for Information Science and Technology (ASIS&T), the John Cotton Dana Lifetime Achievement Award honors an individual for lifetime achievement and exceptional service to the Special Libraries Association (SLA) and the library and information profession; established in 1979, it is presented at the Information Science Summit & Special Libraries Conference and consists of an engraved glass flame (no monetary prize). Nominees must be current ASIS&T members in good standing and have been SLA members for at least ten years; prior award recipients and current members of the Awards & Honors Committee or the ASIS&T Board of Directors are ineligible. Nominations must be submitted via the ASIS&T online portal by 11:59 pm PT on April 8, 2026 and include nominee and nominator contact information, a 200–500 word nomination statement, the nominee’s CV, a detailed letter of nomination, a comprehensive contributions list, and up to three supporting letters (maximum 3 pages each). A jury of at least five members plus an alternate evaluates nominations using asynchronous 10-to-1 scoring and synchronous discussion; jury appointments are made by March 15 and final selection is completed by May 15.