Austin, Texas—The 1999 AAUP Constituency Award was presented to Penn State University Press Director Sanford Thatcher at the association’s Annual Meeting in Austin. The annual award honors staff at member presses who have demonstrated active leadership and service to the association and the university press community.
Thatcher has been active in the copyright realm, serving on the AAUP Copyright Committee for decades, and also as a voice for university presses on the AAP Copyright Committee. He has also served on the AAUP Annual Meeting and Electronic Committees, the AAP Freedom to Read Committee, and other industry groups. Thatcher has been a frequent contributor to a variety of scholarly publishing media, including The Chronicle for Higher Education, Scholarly Publishing, and Publishers Weekly.
Colleagues also recognize Thatcher’s unfailing commitment to all things publishing: “he showed me that it is possible to be passionate about your work and passionate toward your colleagues, too. That passion continues to be evident in Sandy’s tireless advocacy of the enterprise of scholarly publishing. His frequent defenses and explications of that enterprise are marked with emotional fervor and intellectual brilliance. I am grateful that the university press world has such a powerful and persuasive spokesperson.”
Read more about the history of the Constituency Award and see its complete Honor Roll.