University of Guelph Prof. Lawrence Hill, School of English and Theatre Studies, is one of five Canadians to receive an inaugural Library and Archives Canada Scholars Award.

The LAC Scholars Awards are a new prize created to recognize the outstanding contribution of individuals who have dedicated their lives to the creation and promotion of the country’s literary and historical heritage.

The other recipients of the 2019 LAC Scholars Awards were:

  • Marie-Louise Arsenault
  • Ronald I. Cohen
  • Frances Itani
  • Shelagh Rogers

An internationally recognized author, Hill has written 10 books, including The Illegal and The Book of Negroes. He has also won several  awards, including the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize, the Canada Council for the Arts Molson Prize for the Arts, CBC Radio’s Canada Reads and the NAACP Image Award.

Hill, a Member of the Order of Canada, became a professor of creative writing in the School of English and Theatre Studies in 2016.