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Annual Awards
2025-2026 AASECT Awards Committee
The AASECT Awards Committee (AC) responsibility is to evaluate and vote upon the nominations received to highlight and celebrate the range of work sexuality professionals are creating.
Please note that:
- Several awards are exclusive to AASECT Certified members or AASECT members in good standing, and some awards are open to all regardless of AASECT membership.
- Self-nominations are encouraged.
Click here to submit a nomination!
The nominations deadline and nearly all materials are due by December 31, 2025. The ONLY exception is for subcommittee members to receive physical books, which are accepted through January 16, 2026 at 11:59pm PT.
For questions or support, please contact us at awards@aasect.org.
Scroll down to learn more about each award.
See Past Recipents
Learn More About Each Award
AASECT Book Awards
AASECT Book Award for Children under 18 years old (audience focus)
This award is presented to the author(s) of a book that makes a significant contribution to AASECT's vision of sexual wellbeing and education, specifically as it applies to children/adolescents (kids) and teens (young adults), and which elevates the standards of the field. The nominated book must be intended for an audience under the age of 18 and have been published in 2023-2025.
Nominations must include a brief description of why the book is nominated for the award (no more than 250 words).
Assigned Awards Committee members must receive a copy of the book no later than January 16, 2026 to be considered eligible. Digital copies are acceptable.
This award is open to all.
AASECT Book Award for Sexuality Professionals (professional focus)
This award recognizes the author(s) of a book that makes an outstanding contribution to the fields of clinical sexology, sexual health, or sexuality education. To be eligible, the book must be authored by sexuality professionals and specifically written for other professionals in the field, with the goal of advancing and elevating professional standards. The nominated book must have been published in 2023-2025.
Nominations must include a brief description of why the book is nominated for the award (no more than 250 words).
Assigned Awards Committee members must receive a copy of the book no later than January 16, 2026 to be considered eligible. Digital copies are acceptable.
The nominee must be an AASECT member.
AASECT's Sexuality Professionals Book Award for General Audience (audience focus)
This award is presented to the sexuality professional(s) who authored a book that makes a significant contribution to the general public's knowledge of sexuality. The nominated book written for a general audience must have been published in 2023-2025.
Nominations must include a brief description of why the book is nominated for the award (no more than 250 words).
Assigned Awards Committee members must receive a copy of the book no later than January 16, 2026 to be considered eligible. Digital copies are acceptable.
This award is open to all.
Digital Media Awards
AASECT Social Media / Live Web Series Award (YouTube, Instagram, etc.)
This award is for the creator(s)/producer(s) of a web series (YouTube, Instagram, Facebook Live, TikTok, etc.) that makes a significant contribution to increasing sex-positive online content and information. The nominated web series can be developed for a professional audience or for a general audience. The web series must have been produced in a relatively recent timeframe.
This award is open to all.
AASECT Podcast Award
This award is for the creator(s) of a Podcast that makes a significant contribution to AASECT's vision of sexual wellbeing, education, and which elevates the standards of the field. The nominated Podcast can be developed for a professional or general audience, and must have been produced in 2025.
To nominate a Podcast, send three linked episodes for review along with contact information for all podcast host(s). Please include a brief letter of support (no more than 250 words). Please make sure that the committee can access and view the episodes suggested, or the nomination will not be considered.
This award is open to all.
AASECT Audiovisual and Film Award
This award is for the producer(s) of an explicit or non-explicit film, video, or DVD that makes a significant contribution to AASECT's vision of sexual health: "AASECT affirs the fundamental value of sexuality as an inherent, essential, and venefical dimension of being human." The nominated work will amplify diverse voices while expanding the clinical and educational standards of the sexual health field. The nominated film can be developed for a general or professional audience. It must be produced in a relatively recent timeframe. Please make sure that the committee can access and view the links and/or DVDs.
This award is open to all.
AAESCT Awards
AASECT Sexuality Educator Award
This award is presented to a current Sexuality Educator who has made long standing contributions, outstanding achievements, or otherwise had a major impact in one or more areas of sexuality education. Areas of impact may include, but are not limited to: teaching in the community, teaching in higher education, raising public awareness of sexual issues or public advocacy / lobbying policy-makers.
The nominee should have (at minimum) 1 letter of support (not more than 500 words) from individuals who are familiar with their work. The letter(s) must be attached to the nomination application.
The nominee must be an AASECT member.
AASECT Award for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
This award recognizes a sexuality professional whose work is building towards a more sexually liberated world. Nominate your colleagues and friends who are disrupting systems of oppression by raising awareness about and transforming harm, injustice, or inquity in our professions and our world. The AASECT DEI Award celebrates the accomplishments of historically marginalized sexuality professionals enacting real change in our communities. Areas of impact may include, but are not limited to, art, activism, organizing, leadership, education, public advocacy, or media.
The nominee should have at least one letter of support (no more than 500 words) from individuals familiar with their work. Tell us about sexuality professionals centering disability, racial, gender, and reproductive justice. The letter(s) must be attached to the nomination application.
This award is open to all.
AASECT Award for Emergent Professional
This award is presented to an AASECT member (educator, counselor, or therapist) who currently has made impactful contributions in the field of sexuality within their first 3 years of stepping into the sexuality field. This may include students as well as recently graduated AASECT members. This award may be considered for any practical or theoretical body of work, including (but not limited to) providing training, retreats, online courses, videos, or publishing a paper or book.
The nominee should have at least one letter of support (no more than 500 words) from individuals familiar with their work. The letter(s) must be attached to the nomination application.
This nominee must be an Early Career AASECT member.
Professional Standard of Excellence Award
The recipient of this award is a highly regarded expert in their field, recognized by their peers as an accomplished and visionary colleague, and a role model for professional and personal ethics, as well as excellence in achievement. This award honors work that includes, but is not limited to, the development and implementation of sexuality education curriculum, clinical programs or other original clinical contributions, scientific research, and media contributions through art, print, television, or the internet.
The nominee should have at least one letter of support (no more than 500 words) from someone familiar with their work. The letter(s) must be attached to the nomination application.
This award is open to all.
Distinguished Service to AASECT Award
This award is presented to a certified AASECT member in good standing who has worked to promote the mission of AASECT, advocating for sexual heatlh through the development and advancement of sexuality education, counseling, or therapy. This individual will have served the organization through activities including, but not limited to, recruitment of new members; presentation of a paper or workshop at AASECT meetings; serving on the Board of Directors, a committee or task force; developing publications for or about the organization; assistance in the development of AASECT policy; and representation of AASECT in the public sector.
The nominee should have at least one letter of support (no more than 500 words) from individuals familiar with their work. The letter(s) must be attached to the nomination application.
The nominee must be an AASECT member.
Humanitarian Award
This award recognizes outstanding contributions to the field of human sexuality made through private endeavors, charitable events, public-awareness campaigns, organizing efforts, sex-positive educational offerings, and/or policy or advocacy work. The Humanitarian Award may be presented to an individual acting independently, an individual representing a group or institution, or a group or institution as a whole. Supporting documents should clearly specify who is being recognized: the individual, the representative, or the collective body, and describe the nature and impact of their contribution accordingly.
Please submit a brief justification for your nomination (no more than 500 words) in addition to relevant documentation, which may include links to websites, event pages, photo, and/or video documentation. The committee will review a maximum of 5 minutes of video documentation, so please cut your media accordingly or include a time signature for longer submissions.
This award is open to all.
AASECT Award for Integrative Approaches to Sex Therapy
This award recognizes exceptional creativity in applying integrative and interactive approaches to addressing sexual issues in clinical work with individuals, couples, groups, and/or supervisees across diverse ages, genders, and other identities. Eligible works may include (but are not limited to) practical or theoretical contributions such as trainings, retreats, online courses, videos, or published papers/books that demonstrate a holistic understanding of sexuality. Submissions should reflect a thoughtful integration or physical, emotional, cognitive, and/or spiritual dimensions of sexual experience, as well as relational and/or social contexts.
The nominee should have at least one letter of support (no more than 500 words) in addition to relevant documentation, which may include links to websites, event pages, and/or photo or video documentation. The committee will review a maximum of 5 minutes of video documentation, so please cut your media accordingly or include a time signature for longer submissions.
The nominee must be an AASECT Certified Sexuality Counselor or Sex Therapist.
AASECT Conference Schiller Award
This award is given to the best conference abstract proposal demonstrating innovative, pioneering work dealing with group approaches to sexuality education, sexuality counseling or sex therapy. Recipients of the Schiller Prize receive a $500 honorarium (if multiple presenters, the honorarium is split equally).
AASECT Conference Student Presentation Award
This award is given to the best student conference abstract proposal demonstrating innovation and leadership potential for the future. The recipient of the Student Paper Award will be presented with free membership in AASECT for the year.
Awards Committee
Co-chairs: Xuan Ho, LMFT, CST & Claudia Johnson, LMFT, CST
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