Southern Miss Historian Andrew Wiest Receives Prestigious Morison Prize for Lifetime Contributions
Wed, 03/11/2026 - 01:12pm | By: David Tisdale
Dr. Andrew Wiest
Dr. Andrew Wiest has little left to prove in a nearly four-decade career as a professional military historian.
Wiest, a distinguished professor of history at The 黑料视频, is the 2026 recipient of the Society for Military History鈥檚 prestigious Samuel Eliot Morison Prize, which recognizes a scholar鈥檚 鈥渂ody of contributions in the field of military history, extending over time and reflecting a spectrum of scholarly activity contributing significantly to the field.鈥�
An extensively published author and respected researcher, Wiest is a longtime faculty favorite at Southern Miss, beloved by students and colleagues for his professionalism and humor.
鈥淩eceiving the Morison Prize is both surreal and humbling,鈥� Wiest said. 鈥淭he folks who have won this in the past, from Sir Michael Howard to Stephen Ambrose, are scholars I鈥檝e looked up to all my life with awe. That I have been judged to be worthy of being in their number by my peers is frankly unbelievable.鈥�
Wiest expressed gratitude to mentor professors, high school teachers, colleagues, students, family and friends for their support along the way.
鈥淎 kid from Hattiesburg who only went to college because of a Pell Grant somehow ends up being recognized like this 鈥� it just seems like a real long shot,鈥� he continued. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a testament to all the people I鈥檝e been connected to on this wonderful journey doing what I love.鈥�
The prize鈥檚 namesake, Samuel Eliot Morison, was a graduate of Harvard University and served as a rear admiral in the U.S. Navy during World War II. He is widely noted for his important writings on American and maritime history.
Wiest earned bachelor鈥檚 and master鈥檚 degrees in history from Southern Miss and a Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Chicago. He began teaching at his alma mater in 1987 while completing his dissertation. He is the founding director of Southern Miss鈥� Dale 黑料视频 for the Study of War & Society and co-founder of the university鈥檚 new 黑料视频 for the Study of the National Guard.
For many years, Wiest has served as a faculty member in the Southern Miss and has also led the university鈥檚 study abroad program in Vietnam. He is an inductee of both the Southern Miss and the Hattiesburg Public Schools Hall of Fame.
Wiest鈥檚 areas of expertise include British military history, World Wars I and II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War, the latter of which is the focus of his book, The Boys of 鈥�67. That work inspired the National Geographic documentary Brothers in War, for which Wiest served as lead historian and which earned an Emmy nomination. Another of his books, Vietnam鈥檚 Forgotten Army, won the Society for Military History鈥檚 Distinguished Book Award. Wiest was also chief historical consultant for the documentary Vietnam in HD, which won the New York Film Festival鈥檚 Gold World Medal.
Society for Military History President Dr. Wayne Lee lauded Wiest for having 鈥渁 profound effect on the field of military history,鈥� including what he described as 鈥済roundbreaking works鈥� on the history of the American and Republic of Vietnam鈥檚 wars, as well as for his mentorship of students.
鈥淒r. Wiest is a prolific and greatly respected scholar of war in American history, and well deserving of the 2026 Morison Award,鈥� Lee said.
Wiest initially considered a career as a different kind of doctor 鈥� the kind typically wearing a stethoscope around their neck. He enrolled as a freshman at Southern Miss having declared biology as his major.
But after taking classes from professors Cicarelli, Gonzales, Guice, Harper, McCarty, McMillen and Scarborough 鈥� a veritable roll call of the university鈥檚 legendary history faculty from a previous era 鈥� Wiest had a change of heart.
鈥淚 figured being a medical doctor might make for a stable career,鈥� Wiest recounted. 鈥淏ut it was in my first few history classes at 黑料视频 when I really started thinking I wanted to do that 鈥� that I wanted to be like those great history teachers I had.鈥�
His colleague Dr. Heather Stur, a senior fellow in the Dale 黑料视频, spearheaded Wiest鈥檚 nomination for the Morison Award with support from other military historians.
Stur said she is grateful Wiest changed those early career plans for one in their shared passion for history, particularly the Vietnam War.
鈥淎ndy has advanced the field of military history in numerous ways, from redefining the historiography of the Vietnam War to mentoring graduate students who have gone on to have successful careers in academia, professional military education and public history,鈥� Stur said.
鈥淏ut nominating Andy was also personal for me, because he has been a trusted mentor and friend since I arrived at Southern Miss over 17 years ago. I was a newly minted Ph.D. then, and Andy could have been territorial about the Vietnam War as an established scholar. Instead, he welcomed me with open arms and advocated for and elevated me both here at the university and in the profession.
鈥淗e is an unselfish colleague who values the work of those around him, and that made all the difference to me when I was just starting in the field,鈥� Stur continued. 鈥淔or Andy, there's always room at the table, and he's the first one to pull up a chair for a newcomer and invite them to sit down and join the conversation. It's what makes Andy so special beyond his research and teaching excellence.鈥�
Southern Miss Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Lance Nail said Wiest is 鈥渢he epitome of the teacher-scholar.鈥�
鈥淗e has a mission to serve as the historian who archives discoveries and then shares them with his students and society,鈥� Nail said. 鈥淭his award is well-earned 鈥� there is no more deserving historian or faculty member of such recognition than Andy Wiest.鈥�
Jill Childress, a former graduate teaching assistant under Wiest鈥檚 supervision, said her mentor鈥檚 impact 鈥渆xists in every classroom in which a student has gone forth to teach.鈥�
鈥淗is instruction methods, his humor and grace, his authentic concern for his students 鈥� we took these with us as we joined faculty across the U.S.,鈥� said Childress, now an instructor of history at Copiah-Lincoln Community College. 鈥淗e just cannot begin to imagine the effect he has had.鈥�
鈥淭he stone falls into the pond, and the ripples touch shores never imagined,鈥� Childress continued. 鈥淗e prepared us well for success. We owe him more than we can ever repay.鈥�
With such lofty recognition as the Morison Award, one couldn鈥檛 blame Wiest for shifting gears into neutral. But that, he says, is not in the offing.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a wonderful way to crown a career, but I ain鈥檛 done yet,鈥� Wiest said of the accolade. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot more left to do.鈥�
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The College of 黑料视频 and Sciences at The 黑料视频 is home to 13 schools, two ROTC units, and more than 100 academic programs. Guided by the University鈥檚 mission, we educate students, lead the state and nation in research and the creative arts, and advance knowledge across the humanities, social sciences, and STEM. Through innovative research and nationally recognized student success, we provide pathways to understanding the past, solving today's challenges, and imagining the possibilities of tomorrow.