PSIA-AASI Award Program – The Importance of Recognition
PSIA-AASI’s Award Program recognizes the association’s members’ achievements as instructors, leaders, and collaborators in the snowsports industry. Each year, the achievements of standout members are celebrated at PSIA-AASI National Academy in a special event honoring their contributions to snowsports instruction.
With nominations for this season’s honored members due by Nov. 30, at 11:59 p.m., MT, we sat down with Awards and Recognition Committee Chair Robin May to discuss why it’s so important to celebrate our fellow instructors’ contributions to the legacy of our association.
Want to nominate or know a member who deserves recognition and honors? Review the award categories, then submit an application.
Q: Why is the award program so important to the association and how does it help shape and celebrate our snow pro community?
A: Because we have such a rich, diverse history of changing lives. The essential builders of this sport – the pied pipers, the technicians, the philosophers, and the educators – have shaped not only our turns but the culture of skiing in the United States. The European influencers and the development of the American Technique evolved from Austrian, Swiss, and French skiers to the point where we’re the international influencers with a humanistic approach to instruction, our models have begun to influence the world.
We’re now on the threshold of the first Interski celebration in the United States since 1968. The visionaries, educators, instructors, and coaches who have brought us to this period of excellence should and will be a focus of the National Board and the Awards and Recognition Committee. Celebrating our people is one of the most important things we do. It’s akin to a family’s ancestry and the reverence it elicits.
Q: So many PSIA-AASI members make a positive impact on their schools and the sport. What is it about the nominations you see and members who receive the awards that really makes their contributions stand out?
A: Every year we refine and demystify the nomination process to ensure that the requirements and process are clear. The nomination letters are what are really compelling – even for those candidates who are not selected. Sometimes their contributions are legendary in their region but fall short on the national level. For this reason, we encourage our regions to also commit to regional wards. Other times there is insufficient associated documentation or they’re nominated in the wrong category. But it’s always the letters that truly bring the candidates worthiness to life.
Q: Any advice to share for someone who is thinking about submitting a nomination this year?
A: One thing we have done is change the deadlines to unify all six awards into the same time frame and to eliminate the hard deadlines that were difficult to manage. We used to have three awards with deadlines of Dec. 31 and three on April 30. Now our six deadlines are Nov. 30, at 11:59 p.m., MT. This should make nominations easier to assemble, as the early season stoke is growing, and give time to the committee to thoroughly vet and consider the candidates.
