Teaching Tolerance named 2009 Periodical of the Year

The Association of Educational Publishers (AEP) has honored the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Teaching Tolerance magazine as the 2009 Periodical of the Year in its Distinguished Achievement Award adult category.

The Distinguished Achievement Award is among the highest honors in the field of educational publishing. The awards ceremony was held June 9 in Washington, D.C.

Four of the magazine's articles also were recognized, garnering a total of five awards for the SPLC.

 Articles winning awards and the categories in which they were cited were:

• "How My School Taught Me I Was Poor," Feature;
• "Connected to Everything," Fiction;
• "Crossing the Gap," News Story; and
• "Why I Teach," Series.

"We strive to produce materials that help teachers bring respect for diversity into the classroom," said Teaching Tolerance Director Maureen Costello. "To be recognized by the AEP, which considers excellence in design and editorial content as they identify the best in educational materials, is an honor. We're committed to our mission and to excellence."

Teaching Tolerance was a finalist in 11 other categories at this year’s awards ceremony.

AEP has honored the best in supplemental educational publishing for nearly 50 years. Entries for the Distinguished Achievement Award go through a rigorous screening process. Judges for the competition are chosen from a national pool of educational publishing professionals, including writers, editors, designers, curriculum specialists, product developers and marketing directors.

The SPLC's Teaching Tolerance program has earned numerous Distinguished Achievement Awards in past years, including two Golden Lamp awards, AEP’s top honor.