The US Play Coalition is now accepting nominations for its annual Joe L. Frost Award for Distinguished Research. This award is given annually in recognition of a body of exceptional research that has enhanced and expanded the study of play. The 2020 award winner will be named at the 2020 Conference on the Value of Play: PLAY FOR ALL in Clemson, SC.
The inaugural Joe L. Frost Award for Distinguished Research was presented to its namesake – Joe L. Frost, the contemporary father of play advocacy. “Joe Frost has been an influencer for our organization’s work as well as for the world of play,” said Stephanie Garst, executive director of the U.S. Play Coalition. “The creation of this award is a fitting tribute.”
Frost is the Parker Centennial Professor Emeritus at the University of Texas at Austin. He is known across the world for his more than 30 years of work on early childhood and children’s play environments. Past president of both the Association for Childhood Education International and International Play Association/USA, he is the author or co-author of 18 books and numerous publications and has also served as a consultant for playgrounds worldwide.
Frost was influential in the creation of the U.S. Play Coalition, serving as a steering committee member since the coalition’s beginning in 2009. He served as a keynote speaker that year at the coalition’s first conference – then called the Summit on the Value of Play –and has been an honorary chair for each successive conference.
The 2019 Joe L. Frost Award for Distinguished Research was presented to Lynn A. Barnett, Ph.D., Associate 
Professor, Department of Recreation, Sport & Tourism at the University of Illinois and a Fellow in the Academy of Leisure Sciences.
Dr. Barnett has had a long and sustained record of contributions to the study of play throughout her career, which started in the 1970s. Her work has appeared in a variety of publications including books, scholarly journals, technical reports, and papers at professional meetings. In addition to her own scholarship, she has contributed to the study of play through activities such as serving on the editorial board of several journals, including Play Theory and Research, Play and Culture, and Play Research International. She has also taught multiple courses (at both the graduate and undergraduate level) related to play, including Play Across the Lifespan, Play Theories and Their Implications, Play and Leisure, and Humor as Play.
Nominations are now being accepted for the 2020 Joe L. Frost Award for Distinguished Research. Deadline for nominations is December 15, 2019. The 2020 winner will be notified in mid-January and recognized at the 2020 Conference on the Value of Play at Clemson University, March 29-April 1, 2020. The winner will have conference fees paid, hotel accommodations and up to $500 in travel to attend the Play Conference.
The Joe L. Frost Award for Distinguished Research
Purpose:
This is to be awarded annually in recognition of an individual’s body of exceptional research that has enhanced and expanded the study of play.
Evaluation Criteria:
The basis for selection will be the degree to which the nominee has achieved an exceptional research contribution as evidenced by publications, patents, citations, or other criteria deemed important by experts in the field. Outstanding research contributions can take a variety of forms including, but not limited to, theoretical advances, experimental results, development of programs and tools.