AOC is the last stop for awards prior to the EC/Council approval. It is responsible for five awards: Brooks, Abbe, Corporation, Robert H. and Joanne Simpson Mentorship, and Special Awards.

ARA is responsible for Rossby, Charney, Atlas Remote Sensing (biennial), Meisinger, and Houghton.

ORA is responsible for Sverdrup, Stommel, and Fofonoff.

HRA is responsible for the Hydrologic Sciences Medal.

ARA, ORA, and HRA are responsible for the Shukla Prize, the Suomi Technology Medal, and Washington Research and Leadership Medal

Other awards are considered by various award selection committees under the Commissions.

ANC is responsible for acquiring nominations for awards lacking nominations. The ANC can submit and prepare nominations for awards and fellows.

MAY 1 DEADLINE is for all award nominations to be submitted online only. Nominations are considered for three years, except for the biennial Atlas Remote Sensing, which is considered for four years. Prior to May 1, committee chairs will be contacted by AMS to begin scheduling conference calls for their committees. Typically 2–3 conference calls need to be scheduled to ensure quorums are achieved. Committee members can log into the awards system to see completed holdovers before the May 1 deadline.

After the May 1 deadline, an email notification is sent to committee members to notify them to review the awards nominations.  Committees should plan an initial conference call meeting to review process or email guidelines for procedures to follow.

The AOC includes the chairs for ARA, ORA, and HRA. The ARA and ORA chairs are voting members of each other’s committees but may abstain. The HRA chair is also a voting member of the ARA. The ARA, ORA, and HRA must complete deliberations by June 1, and chairs should submit a report to the AOC by mid-June.

The AOC also includes the first Past-President, who shall serve as chair, President, President-Elect, and the Commissioners who have awards under their commission: STAC; Professional Affairs; Education and Human Resources; Publications; and Weather, Water, and Climate Enterprise. Each of these commissions have their own guidelines* to follow utilizing committees and/or boards from within their commissions to evaluate the candidates. The report must be compiled by the Commissioner and submitted to the AOC chair by mid-June. These reports become a part of the July EC agenda and are reviewed and recommended for approval by Council during its July teleconference.

*Commissioners will receive additional information after the meeting.

After the MAY 1 DEADLINE, an email notification is sent to committee members to notify them to review the awards nominations. Items that need to be handled by all chairs include:

• Discuss process and guidelines with committee members.
• Discuss conflicts (review Conflict of Interest Policy and Policy Regarding Involvement in the Nomination Process, which are in section F of the Guidelines for Society and Commission Awards).
• Discuss nominees for each award: special considerations; pros/cons of each nominee.
• Select award winners. It is recommended that only one individual per award be named. Duplicate awards should not be given except in extraordinary circumstances.
• Citation should be reviewed and redrafted to consist of 25 or fewer words.
• For awards requiring Commissioner approval prior to AOC consideration, the names of award winners and citations should be forwarded to the Commissioner by June 1.