The Faculty of Business is pleased to announce that Associate Professor Priscilla Roberts is one of the four-person editorial team awarded this year’s Dartmouth Medal for Most Outstanding Reference Work published in 2021. The medal, awarded annually by the American Library Association, was given for the five-volume set, The Cold War: The Definitive Encyclopedia and Document Collection (ABC-CLIO, 2020).

The official announcement by the American Library Association states:

“From the German invasion of Poland in 1939 until the dissolution of the Soviet Union on December 31, 1990, what has come to be known as the Cold War raged on a global scale and became the defining ethos of the twentieth century. Here, the preeminent military historian of our time, Spencer C. Tucker, three other editors, and a cast of 227 contributors from more than 25 countries combine talents to describe the incidents and key players from around the world that defined this half century of “east-west” struggle for world domination. In addition to its clear and authoritative articles, volume 5 of the set introduces and describes 119 primary documents that altered the course of history, from Ho Chi Minh’s 1945 Declaration of the Independence of Vietnam to Civil Defense Instructions for Home Fallout Shelters in 1980. A detailed chronology, glossary of military terms, 47 maps, an extensive bibliography with many international web sites, and several thoughtful opening essays contribute to make this the outstanding reference source of 2020.”

The Dartmouth Medal, established in 1974, honors the creation of a reference source of outstanding quality and significance. The award is given to the best new reference source published in the previous year.

The Dartmouth committee, made up of reference subject experts from academic, public, and sometimes school and other libraries, receives nominations from librarians, editors, and publishers and spends countless hours reviewing copies throughout the latter half of the year.

Prof. Roberts has worked since 1995 with Prof. Spencer C. Tucker, the chief editor, on fifteen major encyclopedia projects, and has been responsible for editing the documents volumes of twelve of these sets, including The Cold War. Over the years, these projects have received twenty outside awards.

In recognition of Prof. Roberts’ contributions, Prof. Tucker generously dedicated this set to her, stating: “This encyclopedia is dedicated to Professor Priscilla Roberts, a distinguished scholar of the Cold War period, tireless worker, and highly esteemed colleague spanning many years and numerous encyclopedia projects.”