Academy

Any person with a verifiable published credit for writing, design, sculpting, illustration, graphic design, editing, line development, or brand management in three or more gaming products is eligible for admission to the Academy. Admission to the Academy is free to those eligible. Upon admission to the Academy, each member must declare areas of expertise. Disputes will be decided by the GAMA Membership Committee. If there is no Membership Committee, then the GAMA Board of Directors will decide.

When Academy members join the Academy, they are asked to declare areas of expertise called Colleges. A member may belong to up to three Colleges, and may change his or her College membership at any time between the end of Origins and December 15th of the same year. Admission to more than three Colleges requires the applicant to have three or more verifiable credits in all requested College fields; additionally, the applicant must submit a request to the Academy chair. The chair must list the names of any Academy members granted such exceptions on the Academy Web site by January 1st of each year.

In any given year, when the Academy chair is compiling the juries for the different awards, the Academy chair must check to see that there are sufficient members of the relevant College to build the Jury. If there are fewer than 20 members of a College, then no award is given in that College for that year. If no award is given for this reason for the same College two years in a row, that College shall be eliminated from the Academy.

The Colleges are:

• College of Play-By-Mail Games
• College of Historical Games
• College of Board Games
• College of Miniature Games
• College of Collectible Card Games
• College of Non-Collectible Card Games
• College of Role-playing Games

There is no College of Game Support, since game-supporting publications and accessories can come from any game subject area. Jurors and voters for these awards can come from any College.

Academy members may purchase a supporting membership. Dues amounts are determined by the GAMA Board of Directors. Dues for 2006 are $30.00. Supporting Membership grants the supporting member several benefits:

1. A non-transferable, four-day attendee badge to Origins.
2. Seating in the Academy supporters area at the Origins Award ceremony.
3. Admission to the Origins Awards post-ceremony party.
4. A Supporting Membership Ribbon

Hall of Fame members are considered supporting members for life. Individuals who are named winners of an Origins Award are made supporting members for free for the following year.

Deadline for purchasing a Supporting Membership to receive your Origins Badge for Origins 2006 is May 25, 2006.

To join, you may complete the online membership form or download the Academy Membership form (pdf) and mail or fax it to the GAMA Offices:

The Game Manufacturers Association
Attn: AAGAD
280 North High Street, Suite 230
Columbus, Ohio 43215  USA