Krzysztof Jasiewicz Receives the Susanne M. Lotarski Distinguished Achievement Award The William P. Ames Jr. Professor of Sociology and Anthropology Emeritus was presented the award by the Polish Institute of Arts & Sciences of America.

By Brian Laubscher
June 23, 2025

Krzysztof Jasiewicz, William P. Ames Jr. Professor of Sociology and Anthropology Emeritus at Washington and Lee University, was presented with the Susanne M. Lotarski Distinguished Achievement Award by the Polish Institute of Arts & Sciences of America (PIASA) at the organization’s annual conference on June 7 in New York City.

Jasiewicz was one of two recipients of the award, which is selected by the PIASA board of directors. The Lotarski Award is given annually to individuals with a long-standing record of exemplary scholarly publications related to Poland and/or significant professional achievements, as well as a record of distinguished service to the profession and public advocacy for Polish studies or Polish culture. Jasiewicz was joined by Joanna Rostropowicz Clark of the Princeton Research Forum as a 2024 recipient of the award, which includes a $1,000 cash prize.

“The Lotarski Award is a great honor for me, as it is bestowed on American scholars and professionals of Polish descent for their activities consistent with the PIASA mission,” said Jasiewicz. “In addition to the award ceremony, there was a panel devoted to my scholarship, which was a bit embarrassing but a very touching experience.”

Jasiewicz retired from W&L in July 2024, but he remains an active scholar, teaching a class on Art & Science of Survey Research (SOAN 276-01) during Winter Term 2025.

“Receiving the award also makes me a bit sad since it coincides with my retirement,” he said. “I wonder if there is still something I should strive to achieve.”

A leading expert on voting behavior and political change in Poland, Jasiewicz joined the W&L faculty as a full professor in 1994 after having previously served as a visiting professor on two separate occasions. He received a master’s degree from Warsaw University and a doctorate from the Polish Academy of Sciences. He was the founder and first director of electoral studies at the Institute for Political Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences and served as editor of the East European Politics and Societies Journal from 2013-2023.

In 2023, Jasiewicz published a book, titled “Roads to and from Democracy: Studies in Polish Politics, 1980-2020.” It is a collection of papers written over 40 years that examine political attitudes, political behavior and the institutional framework for a transition to democracy in his native Poland.

PIASA was established in 1942 in New York City by a group of eminent Polish scholars wishing to continue the legacy of the Polish Academy of Learning (PAU), which had been dismantled by the German Nazi occupation in 1939. It has served as a crucial center for independent scholarship on Polish history, literature and society, ensuring the continuity of Poland’s cultural development on American soil. In its over 80 years of existence, PIASA has served not only as a custodian of Polish culture and science in exile, but also as a bridge between the Polish and American intellectual communities.

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