Community Awards

The AAJA Board of Directors are now accepting nominations for the 2026 Community Awards. By Thursday, March 26, members are welcome to submit their nominations - explore the various awards below. Recipients will be honored and celebrated at #AAJA26 in Minneapolis on June 27. 

AAJA’s Community Awards celebrate the members, chapters, affinity groups, and leaders who strengthen our organization and uplift our journalism community. These honors recognize mentorship, leadership, service, innovation, and lasting impact within AAJA and beyond. If someone’s dedication has made a difference – whether through advocacy, programming, community-building, or behind-the-scenes support — we encourage you to nominate them.

Nominations are open to active AAJA members. Individuals may nominate others or themselves, and non-members may join AAJA prior to submitting a nomination. AAJA membership is open to all, regardless of ethnic or racial identity.

AAJA reserves the right to select multiple honorees in any category or to withhold an award at its discretion.

Member Awards

  • This award recognizes an individual AAJA member for going above and beyond in service of AAJA and its mission last year through their leadership, including, but not limited to, leadership in formal volunteer positions within AAJA. Memberships must be active/current for eligibility.

  • This award recognizes an AAJA chapter and its leadership for going above and beyond in service of AAJA as an organization and/or AAJA membership last year. This award recognizes contributions by an AAJA chapter's elected officers and its members

  • This award recognizes an AAJA affinity group and its leadership for going above and beyond in service of AAJA as an organization and/or AAJA membership. This award recognizes contributions by an AAJA affinity group's leadership and its members.

  • This award recognizes the outstanding contributions of an AAJA mentor with a track record of paying it forward in a meaningful and distinct way in recent years.

  • This award honors an AAJA member for outstanding efforts to make their newsroom or organization more inclusive and equitable with tangible results and/or meaningful, lasting policy changes in recent years. The work being honored may or may not be public-facing but it must be documented or otherwise verifiable.

  • This award honors general excellence or outstanding work from the last year by a student or early career member with no more than five years’ professional experience.

  • This award honors a veteran member's career, service, and commitment to AAJA. This award also comes with inauguration into the forthcoming AAJA Hall of Fame. This award will be nominated and determined by AAJA leadership; we are not accepting open nominations at this time.

Civic Engagement & Leadership Awards

  • This award honors a local or community news outlet for outstanding continuing coverage on AAPI topics, issues and subjects. Non-English-language media and English-language outlets are all eligible for this category.

  • This award recognizes journalism and journalists that amplify and make space for the AAPI community, with a special focus on solutions and impact. (“Impact” is broadly defined here and will vary depending on the story; while some submissions may lead to policy change or formal accountability, some submissions may be able to claim publication alone is meaningful impact.)

  • This award honors an individual, team, or organization for meaningfully championing AAJA’s mission and its members as well as acting in solidarity with the AAPI community. Honorees will have a demonstrated, ongoing commitment to AAPI diversity, inclusion, equity and belonging in journalism or media. Members of the AAPI community and non-AAPI allies are eligible.

  • This award honors social justice coverage and champions of civil rights journalism in the AAPI community.

  • For more than a century, the Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications at Northwestern University has prepared the next generation of journalists, communicators and industry leaders. Medill is committed to recognizing the importance of diverse voices and perspectives and is proud to partner with AAJA on this award.

    The AAJA-Medill Innovator Award recognizes journalism that approaches AAPI issues in a fresh and innovative way. A $5,000 cash prize will be awarded to a professional working in journalism or at the intersections of journalism and audience, tech, data, product and design, etc. for their work the year prior. The recipient will also receive a $500 travel stipend to attend AAJA’s annual convention. AAJA will waive the cost of the award recipient’s convention registration.

    The winner will be chosen by the AAJA Governing Board based on the quality of any published work, journalistic achievement, commitment to the field of journalism, and sensitivity to AAPI issues.

    In addition to the required nomination materials, these below optional materials can be included:

    • Published piece of journalism that approaches AAPI issues in a fresh and innovative way (optional)

    • Resume (optional)

    • An answer to this question in essay format (max 500 words): How does the nominee introduce innovations in the journalism industry that elevate the AAPI community?