The MacConnell Award celebrates comprehensive projects that address a detailed and specific planning process resulting in a facility that supports the educational goals of the district, the needs of a community and is student-centered for active and dynamic learning. It addresses all components of the criteria in an exceptional manner. The James D. MacConnell award is the most prestigious of all the Association's Awards – and is awarded to the most distinctive submission. There is one winning project and several finalists identified. Projects that are submitted for the MacConnell award, but are not named as Finalists, will also be entered in the Project Awards categories, which category is at the jury’s discretion.