Nancy at the School in 1982.
Dr. Nancy Bookidis, Assistant Director Emerita of the Corinth Excavations, has been named the 2014 recipient of the Aristeia Award for Distinguished Alumni/ae of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens.
Nancy has been a positive presence at the School since her graduate student days when she began excavating at the Sanctuary of Demeter and Kore in Ancient Corinth under the direction of Ron Stroud. She took over direction of that excavation in 1968, and dug there until 1973, followed by two more seasons in 1975 and 1994.
From 1973 until her retirement in July 2003, Dr. Bookidis worked at Corinth as Secretary, Curator, and then as Assistant Director. Lucy Shoe Meritt, in History of the American School at Athens 1939-1980 writes of Nancy, “Her familiarity with all aspects of the Corinthian picture as well as her own qualities make her an ideal Secretary.” Her years of meticulously curating the constantly growing Corinth collection have helped to make the museum a model of its kind.
Her archaeological publications are many and impressive, assisting the continuing work of many scholars who have come to rely on her diligent research, keen observations and reasoned conclusions. To our joy, Nancy continues her study and publication of material from the Demeter and Kore excavations.
Nancy lecturing on-site to students of the Regular Program in 2010. (Photo: J. Clements)
Her decades of service to the School include annual instruction of Regular and Summer Session Members, with whom she generously shares her insights on museum collections and sites throughout Greece, including at Corinth, Athens, Olympia and Epidauros. Nancy has both mentored younger scholars and has collaborated with many grateful colleagues. She is a vital part of the heart and soul of the School.
The Aristeia Award, now in its fourth year, was created to honor those who have done the most over the years to support the School's mission in teaching, research, archaeological exploration, and/or publication. Nancy has made outstanding contributions in all of these areas. She stands alongside our previous three recipients, Alan Boegehold, Jim McCredie and Ron Stroud, as exemplary representatives of the ideals of service and scholarship.
The ASCSA Alumni/ae Association will present Nancy with the Aristeia Award at its next meeting, which will be held at the AIA/APA convention in Chicago in January (exact date and time will be announced soon). All alumni/ae are encouraged to make plans to attend this gathering to help us celebrate Nancy’s career and her contributions to the life of the School.
