The Governor’s Awards for the Arts & Humanities recognize individuals and organizations that have made outstanding contributions to Georgia’s civic and cultural vitality. Originally, the state of Georgia inaugurated the awards as the Governor’s Awards in the Humanities.
In 1986, through the initiative of Governor Joe Frank Harris, Georgia Humanities was designated as the convener and organizer of the annual Governor’s Awards in the Humanities, which recognized outstanding contributions to the humanities. Georgia’s program was among the first of its kind in the nation. Other states, including Alaska, Montana, and Missouri, have also offered governor’s awards programs at various times.
The Georgia’s Governor’s Awards ceremony was also occasion for the presentation of the Annual Humanities Lecture, delivered before a public audience in Atlanta. Past speakers included poet laureates David Bottoms and Bettie Sellers, historians Dan Carter, James Cobb, and Phinizy Spalding, theologian Robert Franklin, National Endowment for the Humanities chairman William Ferris, literary scholar Virginia Spencer Carr, and other distinguished thinkers and writers. Recipients of the Governor’s Awards in the Humanities were honored at a special luncheon and ceremony in the Old Georgia Railroad Freight Depot, adjacent to the state capitol building. The ceremony also included the Annual Humanities Lecture and presentations by Georgia governors. Past presenters were Joe Frank Harris, Zell Miller, Roy Barnes, and Sonny Perdue.
In 2012 the Georgia Council for the Arts joined Georgia Humanities and the Office of the Governor in offering the award, which became known as the Governor’s Awards for the Arts & Humanities.
The Governor’s Awards for the Arts & Humanities recognize individual Georgians and Georgia-based institutions for their contributions to the enrichment of Georgia’s civic and cultural life. Recipient institutions include museums, historical societies, libraries, foundations, businesses, journals, media, and programs. The award recognizes institutions for the scope and cumulative impact of their work, their exemplary efforts to promote greater public awareness and appreciation of the arts and humanities, and their service to Georgia’s communities and the state. Institutional award winners have included the Massie Heritage Center in Savannah, Augusta Museum of History, Historic Augusta, the Georgia Sea Island Singers, the journals Chattahoochee Review and the Georgia Review, and the University of Georgia Press.
Individual recipients of the Governor’s Awards come from every region of the state. They are recognized for devoting a lifetime of service toward advancing the humanities and include writers who have recovered stories that would otherwise be lost and presented them to new audiences; artists, educators, and masters whose work in history, literature, art, and other cultural fields has influenced generations of learners and enriched the quality of life in their communities; scholars whose efforts have ensured that the humanities reach the broadest possible public audiences; and community activists, professionals, and volunteers whose labors are critical to the preservation of the building blocks of community memory—architecture, archival records, archaeological finds, and the narratives and biographies of those who came before us. Among the individual award winners are Adrienne Bond, Kenneth Coleman, W. W. Law, and Robert Scott.
After the awards became the Governor’s Awards for Arts & Humanities in 2012, the program continued to honor recipients through a public ceremony. Current nomination guidelines describe recipients as selected through a nomination process, and recipients honored at a ceremony presented by the Office of the Governor in partnership with Georgia Humanities and the Georgia Council for the Arts.
The Governor’s Awards for the Arts & Humanities bring recognition to the often “unsung heroes” in Georgia’s communities, those who rarely seek attention for their efforts but whose work enriches and enhances the lives of Georgia’s citizens.
