Conferences & Awards
The Spirit of America Award
The Spirit of America Award, which is co-sponsored by NCSS and Social Studies School Service, was created to give recognition to an individual who has made a significant contribution that exemplifies the “American Democratic Spirit.” The award honors persons who follow their conscience and act against current thinking in order to stand up for equity, freedom, and the American spirit of justice.
2023 Award Winner
Zoe Weil is the recipient of the 2023 Spirit of America Award. She is the co-founder and president of the Institute for Humane Education (IHE), where she created the first graduates programs in comprehensive Humane Education, linking human rights, environmental preservation, and animal protection, offered online through an affiliation with Antioch University. She is a frequent keynote speaker at education and other conferences and has given six TEDx talks, including her acclaimed "The World Becomes What You Teach" . She is the author of seven books, including The World Becomes What We Teach, Educating a Generation of Solutionaries, Nautilus silver medal winner Most Good, Least Harm, Moonbeam gold medal winner Claude and Medea, and Above All, Be Kind: Raising a Humane Child in Challenging Times. Ms. Weil was named one of Maine Magazine's 50 independent leaders transforming their communities and the state and is the recipient of the Unity College Women in Environmental Leadership award. She was also a subject of the Americans Who Tell the Truth portrait series.
List of previous award winners:
Year Received
Recipient Name
1989
Ralph Nader
1990
Jimmy Carter
1991
Marian Wright Edelman
1992
Rosa Parks
1994
Barry Goldwater
1995
Marva Collins
1996
George McGovern
1998
Dolores Huerta
1999
Fred Rogers
2000
Morris Dees
2001
Elizabeth Campbell
2002
George Mitchell
2003
Hugh O' Brian
2004
George Russell, Jr.
2005
Jim Lehrer
2006
Chief Joe Medicine Crow
2007
Loung Ung
2008
Firoozeh Dumas
2009
Greg Mortenson
2010
Da Chen
2011
Diane Ravitch
2012
James W. Loewen
2013
Rep. John Lewis
2014
Jose Antonio Vargas
2015
Masahiro Sasaki
2015
Clifton Truman Daniel
2016
Terrence Roberts
2017
Rosa Rios
2018
Khizr Khan
2019
Sylvia Mendez
2020
Nikole Hannah Jones
2021
Florent Groberg
2022
LaGarrett King
2023
Zoe Weil