Mal Sillars Distinguished Argumentation Scholar Award
The Sillars Award is given to individuals in recognition for a lifetime of contributions to research in the study of argument. It honors Malcolm Sillars, a key organizer of the conference since its inception.
| 2007 | Malcolm Sillars, University of Utah |
| 2009 | David Zarefsky, Northwestern University |
| 2011 | Bruce Gronbeck, University of Iowa |
| Frans Van Eemeren, University of Amsterdam | |
| 2013 | G. Thomas Goodnight, University of Southern California |
| James F. Klumpp, University of Maryland | |
| 2015 | Dennis Gouran, Pennsylvania State University |
| 2017 | Donn W. Parson, University of Kansas |
| Robert C. Rowland, University of Kansas | |
| 2019 | Susan Klein, Ohio State University |
| Carol Winkler, Georgia State University | |
| 2025 | Marilyn Young, Florida State University |
McGee Outstanding Graduate Student Research Award
The McGee Outstanding Graduate Student Research Award is given for the best graduate student research paper presented at each conference. The award is chosen by that conference's program selection committee.
| 2005 | Sarak K. Burgess, University of California, Berkeley |
| "Transitional Bodies of Law: The Demand for Recognition in the United Kingdom's Gender Recognition Act." | |
| 2007 | Frank Zenker, University of Hamburg |
| "Complexity Without Insight: Ceteris Paribus Clauses in Assessing Conducive Argumentation." | |
| 2009 | Ryan Solomon, University of Wisconsin, Madison |
| "Shame on You Mbeki! The Problem of Denialism in South African AIDS Discourse." | |
| 2011 | Laura Alberti, University of Southern California |
| "Remembering the Lion of the Desert: Visual Rhetoric and Argument in the Contemporary Public Sphere." | |
| 2013 | Mathew Bost, University of Minnesota |
| "Arguing for Emptiness: Community in the Debate Over Rhetoric and Love." | |
| 2015 | Emma Frances Bloomfield, University of Southern California |
| "Argumentation in the Identity Politics of the Selfie: Substituting Narcissus’s Reflection for Pygmalion’s Partner" | |
| 2017 | Jeremy David Johnson, Pennsylvania State University |
| 2019 | Junyi Lv, University of Southern California |
| "Local Argument Spheres in China: A Case Study of the Chinese Debate Show: Qupashuo" | |
| 2025 | Brooke Hubsch, Pennsylvania State University |
| “Argumentation, The Courts, and Public Values: The Role of Impartiality and Transparency in Shaping Public Scrutiny of Judicial Opinions” |