The purpose of the Publications Award is to recognize excellence in a constituent society's or other ASCLS-affiliated group's (e.g., Diversity Advocacy Council or Developing Professionals Forum) publication/newsletter. Awards are given in two categories: (1) the traditional newsletter paper format (which includes a paper newsletter posted on a state society's website) and (2) the true web-based newsletter with associated links, animations, etc.

Award: Winners receive a plaque at the ASCLS Annual Meeting Awards Ceremony. Awards are given to the top three publications in each of the following categories:

• Paper-based version
• True web-based newsletters (Not PDF or copies of the paper format published on the website)

Nominations deadline: Feb. 15
Apply for the Constituent Society Publications Award via the Online Awards Application Form. 

Eligibility:
All ASCLS Constituent Societies/affiliated groups are eligible to submit entries with the following provisions:

• Publication dates of submitted issues must be between the previous February and the current February, inclusively
• The ASCLS office (ascls@ascls.org) must be on the mailing list or email list

For print publications:

• A PDF copy of two (2) paper issues that best represent the publication efforts are to be submitted

For web-based publications:

• Submit the web site address with an indication of the two (2) issues that best represent the publication efforts.
• Keep all newsletters for that award year on the website.  If this is not possible due to space constraints, please contact the Awards Committee for directions on submission before newsletter files are replaced.

The Awards Committee reserves the right to withhold the award for the current year if nominees do not meet requirements.

Judging criteria:  The constituent society's or ASCLS-affiliated group's publication judged to be in the top three from the paper-based and from the web-based newsletters will receive an award.  Judging of each entry is based on the following:

• Overall appearance — The publication is inviting for the receiver to read. It "jumps out" for the reader from a collection of publications or from the screen. It is easy to follow, has consistent type styles with quality printing (for printed version).
• Coverage and content — The articles in the publication should have appeal, relevance, diversity and balance. It should be relevant to clinical laboratory science; have a balance of national, regional, and local news and actively elicit suggestions, opinions, articles, etc., from readers. The printed publication should clearly and prominently list contact information for the editor, Board of Directors, committee chairs, etc. (mail, phone, email).
• Creativity and display — The publication design elements should reflect imaginative and original planning. Each page should have a clear center of interest with captions, headlines, photos and copy effectively filling the allotted space. For the web-based version, it should be easy to get to and easy to view. Posted links must be current and be functional.
• Photos, arts and graphics — The photos are of good quality and reflect imaginative and original layout and spacing. Graphics and artwork have technically good quality that enhances the publication.
• Copy — The copy is informative, interesting and includes imaginative headlines, news stories, feature articles, quotes, etc. The writing is lively with strong, colorful nouns and verbs (except for scientific articles). Paragraphs of approximately 40 words have the most important facts in the opening words.

All publications will be examined for compliance with the ASCLS standards of publication as provided to all constituent society editorial staff members: editor, president, and immediate past-president.