Nominations are now being accepted for the
Child’s Right to Play Award and the Doctor of Play Award!
The awards will be presented at the 2024 IPA-USA Conference, being held this year in Greenville, South Carolina from September 25 to 28. Nominations are being accepted through August 15, 2024. To nominate an individual or individuals for either award, please read the descriptions below and complete the associated form. If you are nominating multiple individuals, please complete a separate form for each person. Questions? Email us here.
The Child’s Right to Play Award is presented to an individual who demonstrates why play is essential in preserving childhood. This individual should be seen as an advocate for play through:
- Daily practice in classrooms
- Articles or publications that promote play
- Policy works or legislation
- Presentation of workshops or educational courses that promote child-initiated play in birth through college classrooms.
- Outreach and collaboration with others to promote the child’s right to play
The Doctor of Play Award will recognize an individual who has dedicated their professional life to advocating for play. The recipient of this award will have demonstrated lifelong passion, advocacy, service, and commitment to advancing play in children’s lives.
Previous award winners
| Year | Recipient – Doctor of Play |
|---|---|
| 2001 | Sunny Davidson |
| 2004 | Joe Frost, Jimi Jolley (posthumous) |
| 2007 | Elizabeth Rike |
| 2010 | Rhonda Clements |
| 2013 | Marcy Guddemi |
| 2016 | Olga Jarrett |
| 2019 | Dorothy Sluss |
| 2022 | Dr. Catherine Ramstetter, Lisa Murphy Susan Chlebowsky |
| 2024 | To be announced in Greenville, SC, on September 28, 2024. |
| Year | Recipient – Child’s Right to Play |
|---|---|
| 2019 | Summer Belloni |
| 2022 | Rich Lange, Pat Rumbaugh Dr. Patrick Lewis Representative Jacob Rosecrants |
| 2024 | To be announced in Greenville, SC, on September 28, 2024. |