Goddard Riverside Stephan Russo Book Prize for Social Justice Rules 2024

Questions? Problems? Contact us and we’ll be glad to help!

Trish Anderton 
Director of PR 
Goddard Riverside 
tanderton@goddard.org 
mobile: 929-249-1449 

Rules & Guidelines  

The Goddard Riverside Stephan Russo Book Prize for Social Justice celebrates the power of the written word to create change in the name of justice for all people—a value shared by the publishing community and Goddard Riverside.

Entry Requirements 

Please review the rules to ensure your submissions are: 

  • Properly aligned with the subject matter; 
  • Published within the correct time period; 
  • In accordance with the formatting requirements for print or digital; 
  • Accompanied by an entry form and $75 fee; 
  • Submitted during the contest entry period. 

Subject Matter 

Eligible works are full-length, nonfiction books with subject matter related to housing, early childhood and secondary education, older adult life, city arts, social policy and other important aspects of community life that support and promote Goddard Riverside’s mission of investing in people and strengthening community. Books must be written in English.  

Book Release Dates  

Please note that the eligibility window has changed. To be eligible for the 2024 Book Prize, nominated books must have been published in the United States between August 1, 2023 and July 31, 2024.  

Formats 

If you’d like, you can submit both a digital and a print copy, but this is not required. 

Digital 

Email a PDF to russoprize@goddard.org. No DRM or other copy-limiting technology is permitted. Watermarks over the text are not allowed; the text must be easily readable. Page proofs are not acceptable. Books must be received before midnight on April 29, 2024.

Print 

Eight (8) copies of each title should be submitted. For submission purposes, published books and bound galleys or bound manuscripts for books not yet printed will be accepted. Page proofs are not acceptable. Books must arrive by midnight on April 29, 2024. Books should be mailed to: 

Russo Book Prize 
Goddard Riverside 
593 Columbus Ave. 
New York, NY 10024 

Entry Form and Fee 

There is an application fee of $75 for each book. To enter a book, please fill out the online submission form and pay the fee with a credit card. If paying by check, please contact us.  

Deadlines and Key Dates 

Books are accepted starting in March of 2024. Entry forms and books must be received no later than April 29, 2024. Publishers are asked to submit books as soon as they are available in order to help spread out the judging panel’s workload.  

The winner will be announced and the shortlist will be celebrated at our Bash in September/October.

Limits  

There is no limit to the number of books an author or publisher may submit.  

Additional Conditions   

The author of the winning title (or their representative) must be present for the Bash in Fall 2024. The author of the winning title will be asked to do a book chat in 2025 and may be asked to do other promotional tasks or events.

Benefits   

Press releases announcing the shortlist and the winning title will be sent to news outlets. Goddard Riverside will promote the shortlist and prize winner on its web and social properties. Publishers of winning titles will be authorized to use the medallion on book jackets and the book prize logo on other promotional materials. 

Contact 

Trish Anderton 
Director of PR 
Goddard Riverside 
tanderton@goddard.org 
mobile: 929-249-1449